NATO Baltic Air Police (BAP) jets took to the skies Thursday to intercept two Russian Sukhoi SU-24 bombers near the boundary of Latvia's territorial waters in the Baltic Sea, the National Armed Forces (NBS) reported in a tweet.

According to the manufacturer's source sukhoi.org, the upgraded front-line bomber Su-24 is designed for bombardment with bombs and missiles in all weather conditions, daytime and night, including at low altitudes with pinpoint destruction of ground and naval surface targets.

NATO Baltic Air Policing QRA F-16 jets on 18 Sept scrambled to intercept RU Armed Forces 2x Su-24 over the Baltic Sea. — NBS (@Latvijas_armija) September 18, 2014

According to additional NBS reports, between January 1 and September 1 Russian planes approached Latvian airspace borders 142 times, with the greatest flurry of fly-bys happening in May and June. Fighter jets were spotted a total of 62 times, transport planes 16 times, reconnaissance craft 45 times, command planes 8 times, bombers 4 times and helicopters twice so far this year.