Synopsis Norwegian Air Force F-35 Lightning II fighter aircraft have just wrapped up a NATO deployment aimed at securing Iceland’s airspace. Four F-35s were on standby ready to be scrambled if an unidentified aircraft came close to Icelandic airspace. The Air Policing mission for Iceland is provided periodically by NATO member countries for three to four weeks at a time, as Iceland does not have armed forces of its own. NATO Air Policing, which takes place over the entire Alliance 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, is a peacetime mission that aims to preserve the security of Alliance airspace. The Norwegian deployment ran from 19 January until 9 February 2023. This is the second time Norway has sent fifth-generation fighter jets to cover Icelandic airspace. Footage includes shots of F-35 aircraft in a hangar, on the runway and taking off. It also includes soundbites with Lieutenant Colonel Trond Haugen, Squadron Commander, 332 Squadron of the Royal Norwegian Air Force, and Thórdís Kolbrún Reykfjörd Gylfadóttir, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland. Transcript ---SHOTLIST— (00:00) VARIOUS - F-35 HANGAR WITH DOOR OPENING (00:10) CLOSE UP - HANGAR APEX WITH F-35 INSIDE (00:16) WIDE - HANGAR WITH DOOR OPEN WITH F-35 INSIDE (00:23) WIDE - PILOT APPROACHING F-35 INSIDE HANGAR (00:33) MEDIUM - PILOT CLIMBS INTO F-35 USING STEP LADDERS AND ENTERS COCKPIT (00:45) CLOSE-UP - PILOT INSIDE F-35 COCKPIT CONDUCTING PRE-FLIGHT CHECKS (00:57) WIDE - F-35 INSIDE HANGAR WITH PILOT INSIDE COCKPIT AND TECHNICIAN DOING FINAL PRE-FLIGHT CHECKS (01:03) WIDE - F-35 TAXIING OUT OF HANGAR (01:13) WIDE - F-35 EXITING ON AIRFIELD (01:23) WIDE - TWO F-35s EXITING ON AIRFIELD (01:31) WIDE - TWO F-35s EXITING WITH HANGAR IN THE BACKGROUND (01:39) VARIOUS - TWO F-35s EXITING WITH AIRFIELD IN THE BACKGROUND (01:59) WIDE - F-35 SIDE PROFILE STATIC BEFORE TAXIING (02:09) WIDE - F-35 SIDE PROFILE DURING TAXIING (02:28) VARIOUS - F-35 TAKE OFF (Courtesy of the Royal Norwegian Air Force) (02:43) WIDE - F-35 APPROACHING FINAL TAXIING WITH GROUND CONTROLLER (02:53) MEDIUM - F-35 WITH PILOT INSIDE COCKPIT CONDUCTING POST-TAXIING CHECKS (03:04) WIDE - PILOT DISEMBARKS F-35 USING STEP LADDERS (03:12) VARIOUS - F-35 PUSHED BACK INTO HANGAR POST TAXIING (03:40) VARIOUS - F-35 TECHNICIANS CONDUCT PRE-FLIGHT CHECKS ON F-35 (03:54) VARIOUS - REAR PROFILE OF F-35 INSIDE HANGAR (04:09) MEDIUM - F-35 TECHNICIAN CONDUCTS PRE-FLIGHT CHECKS (04:15) WIDE - F-35 TECHNICIAN CONDUCTS PRE-FLIGHT CHECKS (04:23) WIDE - EXTERIOR OF HANGAR (04:30) WIDE - NORWEGIAN FORCE PROTECTION TROOPS CONDUCTING SENTRY DUTIES (04:41) VARIOUS - NORWEGIAN FORCE PROTECTION TROOPS CONDUCTING PERIMETER PATROLS (05:14) TIMELAPSE - ICELANDIC COAST GUARD MONITORING AIR TRAFFIC INSIDE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL CENTRE (05:24) VARIOUS - ICELANDIC COAST GUARD MONITORING AIR TRAFFIC INSIDE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL CENTRE (06:13) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) LIEUTENANT COLONEL TROND HAUGEN, SQUADRON COMMANDER, 332 SQUADRON, ROYAL NORWEGIAN AIR FORCE “Looking at the map, Iceland is obviously in a strategically important position in the High North, being where it is. So, you know, keeping a watchful eye on the High North from Iceland is obviously an important part of maintaining situational awareness of what's going on up north in the NATO area of responsibility.” (06:35) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) LIEUTENANT COLONEL TROND HAUGEN, SQUADRON COMMANDER, 332 SQUADRON, ROYAL NORWEGIAN AIR FORCE “Iceland is an important player in this obviously As you know, they don't have their own armed forces, but they do support with their coast guard and their coast guard is running their air surveillance mission here in Iceland, which is in place with their radars and systems to be able to make and maintain a 24/7 surveillance of the airspace around Iceland. And then we integrated that part by being a first responder capability with their two F-35s that are on constant alert to be sent on their ways to intercept and identify any kind of threat to the airspace around us.” (07:13) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) LIEUTENANT COLONEL TROND HAUGEN, SQUADRON COMMANDER, 332 SQUADRON, ROYAL NORWEGIAN AIR FORCE “All the F-35 is what we call a fifth-gen aircraft and has multiple capabilities that are SA enhancing. So situational awareness enhancing for doing a mission like this. It's got awesome sensors that keep a good lookout on what's going on around us. So when we integrate that with the radar capability that is already existing in Iceland, it makes for a very good combination to keep a good understanding of what's going on.” (07:45) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) - THÓRDÍS KOLBRÚN REYKFJÖRD GYLFADÓTTIR, MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS, ICELAND “Of course it is a deterrence in itself that we have the air policing because it shows both the capabilities and the commitments of NATO. So if we didn't have that, we would be much more vulnerable here.” (08:01) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) - THÓRDÍS KOLBRÚN REYKFJÖRD GYLFADÓTTIR, MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF ICELAND “We have never in history have had armed forces. And we are, even though the country is kind of big, the nation is now around 370,000. And, you know, not long ago it was even smaller. So it would always be small. We have had, you know, the bilateral defence agreement with the United States since 1951, and we are a founding member of NATO. So when you prioritise the project and look what makes sense, this is the outcome and I really don't think that's going to change, at least not in the near future.” (08:42) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) - THÓRDÍS KOLBRÚN REYKFJÖRD GYLFADÓTTIR, MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF ICELAND “It was a very big thing when we decided to be a member of NATO, founding member at the time, and it was very controversial. Today we have, you know, more than 75 per cent support of Iceland being a member of NATO. And now it's written out as the cornerstone of our national security policy. And obviously, with the war going on now, I think almost everyone can see what it would mean if we weren't.” (09:11) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) - THÓRDÍS KOLBRÚN REYKFJÖRD GYLFADÓTTIR, MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF ICELAND “With the fact that we have a war in Europe, that creates a new reality, a new norm that most of us were told and believed that wouldn't happen again. It brings, you know, the threat closer and you can feel how big of a threat it is for Ukraine's neighbours, which are our neighbours and which are part of NATO. And it also shows that the values that we cherish and that we built our society on is being attacked and is being tested. And if we can't be sure that those are the values that we are going to build our society on, you know, Iceland doesn't stand a chance in Putin's world, so then it’s very clear and that is why we stand very firmly with Ukraine and say out loud in every opportunity we get that Ukraine must win this war, that's the only way we can really have peace again in Europe.” ## END ##