THE SKY OVER LITHUANIA . forest surrounding the air field deep green, and the armed Spanish airforce Eurofighter Typhoon light gray. When the jet reached the end of the runway, it turned and paused, its insect-sharp nose and stubby canards dipping slightly. Suddenly its two engines, afterburners lit, kicked it into the air. A wingman followed seconds later, and the two Spanish fighters quickly faded into distant dots, headed north. What I had witnessed that summer day in 2017-beginning only eight minutes earlierwhen aKlaxon alert flushed two pilots from the ready room-is a standing ritual in air forces around the world. When deployed to the Baltic-, responsible for guarding NATO's eastern flank, each scramble needs to be perfect.
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