RAF Top Guns blast missiles and heavy machine guns in Estonia drills as Zelensky begs for weapons for counterstrike | The Sun

RAF Top Guns blasted advanced missiles and heavy machine guns as they took part in Nato war games alongside 10,000 allied troops.

The huge military exercise off the coast of Estonia "demonstrated the ability to deliver precision strikes while operating deep in enemy battlespace."

Fearsome Apache attack helicopters armed with Hellfire missiles, CRV7 rockets and 30mm rounds took to the skies on Friday.

Typhoon jets loaded with Paveway IV laser-guided bombs and 27mm armour-piercing rounds also joined in the dramatic drills.

Brit Air Force troops worked alongside squaddies from France and Estonia in the fiery show of force, slamming targets in the sea during the Spring Tempest exercise.

The drills have been hailed as a roaring success by RAF chiefs, but the seamless operation is expected to rattle neighbouring Russia.

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Wing Commander Scott MacColl, 140 Expeditionary Air Wing’s Commanding Officer, said: "Exercise Spring Tempest has been an outstanding opportunity to integrate effects across the Land, Maritime and Air domains.

"Working with the Royal Navy and Army has allowed us to exercise high-end skill sets, while enhancing interoperability across a broad range of Nato allies.

"The flexibility to operate effectively across differing environments demonstrates our key contribution to collective defence and regional security.

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"As important, the scale of this exercise further develops Alliance cohesion and cross-nation understanding."

In February, The Sun joined Brit soldiers as they carried out Nato war games just 80 miles from Russia in temperatures as low as -12C.

"We can see that our Estonian counterparts are worried about what's going on with Russia. But they feel we're here to help," one British tank driver told The Sun.

The latest drills follow on from the Spring Storm operation, the largest annual military exercise in Estonia involving the UK-led NATO enhanced Forward Presence.

More than 1,500 Brit soldiers trained alongside more than 10,000 personnel from 11 Nato countries.

Last month, RAF Typhoons were forced to intercept Russian fighter jets flying close to Nato airspace following a tense standoff.

They scrambled from Amari Air Base in Estonia to visually identify multiple Russian aircrafts flying over the Baltic Sea.

The RAF will fulfill Nato's Air Policing Mission in Estonia until August, when the task is to be handed over to the Spanish Air Force.

They remain on Quick Reaction Alert – known as QRA – and sit in a constant state of readiness and modus operandi of air defence always maintained by Nato allies.

This means crews are on standby 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and ready to react at a moment's notice to reach a threat within minutes, no matter the location, defending Nato skies seamlessly, day and night.

The allied war games above ground come as Ukraine begged for more weapons to bolster its counter-offensive against Russia.

The long-awaited pushback against Vladimir Putin was originally billed for spring, but has now been delayed until summer.

One of President Zelensky's closest aides has frantically called for more firepower to be sent to Ukraine as artillery supplies dwindle.

Dr Ihor Zhovkva, deputy head of the president’s office and his chief foreign affairs adviser, also praised Britain for its unwavering support.

He told The Sunday Times the UK is "one of the leading countries in showing real incentive and courage in how to really bring victory" – while suggested other nations need to do more.

Zhovkva said: "I’m not a military man. I’m working on the diplomatic front and my task is more weapons, more support, more ammunition.

"But if you want to start a successful counter-offensive you need everything at your disposal, including artillery, armoured vehicles and tanks, so probably we don’t have enough."

He pointed to President Volodymyr Zelensky's recent international tour, saying the leader has been on a mercy mission pleading for military aide.

"From May 3 to June 2 you calculate the number of countries he visited, it’s huge," Zhovkva continued.

"More weapons is the No 1 topic in each and every conversation . . . Every visit my president makes is about military help, further delivery of weapons.

"Every country knows what kind of weapons we need from them, to protect our territory, stop the rockets."

Ukraine suggested others should take heed of Britain after we doled out a series of terrifying Storm Shadow rockets.

The air-launched cruise missiles can travel up to 600mph and blast targets up to 350 miles away that have long been out of reach for Ukraine.

It means the weapons could hit targets at maximum range in just 35 minutes – travelling near half the length of the UK.

"The UK is helping in enormous quantities, becoming a game changer in a very important weapon," Zhovkva said.

The devastating missiles can wipe out well-defended static targets like facilities, bunkers and bridges – including Putin's favourite Crimean bridge that was attacked last October.

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