US and Polish pilots stand together on NATO’s front line
News Outlet goes inside Poland’s 32nd Tactical Air Base, where American and Polish forces work side by side as Warsaw prepares for a new era of military capability. (Flight video courtesy of the 32nd Tactical Air Base, Lask, Poland.)
Polish President Karol Nawrocki has revived a long-standing proposal to create a permanent U.S. military base in Poland called “Fort Trump.” Warsaw is seeking to reinforce NATO’s eastern flank as Russian aircraft and military forces continue to test the airspace of allied nations.
Nawrocki said he believes Poland and the United States will reach an agreement on the installation. Warsaw views a permanent American troop presence as a key part of its long-term strategy to strengthen national security and deter Russia.
“I hope that when work on the base is completed, President Trump will be able to personally attend the inauguration of ‘Fort Trump,’” Nawrocki said in New York on Sept. 22.
Presidential candidate Karol Nawrocki, a conservative historian backed by the right-wing Law and Justice party, greets supporters as he arrives at his headquarters after the presidential election runoff in Warsaw, Poland, Sunday, June 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)
The idea was first put forward in 2018, when Nawrocki’s predecessor, President Andrzej Duda, proposed naming a permanent U.S. military facility in Poland “Fort Trump.” The plan was intended to secure a lasting American military presence on Polish soil.
The need for stronger defenses was highlighted just hours after Nawrocki spoke in New York. A Russian Mi-8 military helicopter briefly crossed into Polish airspace from Russia’s Kaliningrad region.
Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski also addressed the issue during a briefing with Polish media after delivering remarks to the U.N. Security Council in New York on Wednesday.
Poland’s Army Operational Command said the helicopter entered Polish territory north of Braniewo at 11:08 a.m. It traveled roughly 300 meters into Polish airspace at its deepest point.
The Russian aircraft stayed inside Polish airspace for 42 seconds before turning back.
Polish radar operators monitored the helicopter during the entire incident. Fighter jets were scrambled, and ground-based air defense units were placed on alert.
Polish military officials said the short-lived violation appeared to be another test by Moscow of NATO’s air-defense readiness and response times.
The incursion has added momentum to Poland’s campaign for a permanent U.S. base. Nawrocki acknowledged that no firm timetable has been set because financial and administrative issues still need to be resolved.
“It’s hard for me to give specific dates, but I think this matter has been definitively confirmed, because President Trump is known for keeping his word,” Nawrocki said.
“Infrastructure preparation is progressing. In fact, the appropriate infrastructure is already being selected,” he told Bloomberg.
Nawrocki described the base as “only a matter of time” and expressed confidence that construction could be finished before Trump’s term ends in 2029.
President Donald Trump shakes hands with Polish President Karol Nawrocki, during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2025, in Washington. (Evan Vucci/AP Photo)
Deputy Defense Minister Stanisław Wziątek has also discussed the proposed U.S. base, saying the main unresolved issue is its exact location, according to reports.
Wziątek said the facility could accommodate between 3,000 and 5,000 American troops.
Poland’s broader goal is to host “around 15,000” U.S. troops. That would build on the approximately 10,000 American service members already stationed in the country, most of them on a rotational basis.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk warned Sept. 18 that, according to intelligence available to Warsaw, Russia was planning drone and missile strikes against eastern NATO countries that Moscow could present as accidental, The Associated Press reported.
Donald Tusk, Poland’s prime minister, during the Polish Army Parade in Warsaw, Poland, on Friday, Aug. 15, 2025. (Damian Lemanski/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Russian drones have repeatedly entered NATO airspace and crashed on alliance territory, including in Poland and Romania, while NATO countries have scrambled fighter aircraft in response to Russian aerial activity near their borders over the years.
Trump had also signaled progress in strengthening the U.S.-Polish military relationship, calling the developments on a base a “historic step for our Great US/Polish Alliance” and indicating on Truth Social that further details could be announced.
“Thanks to the bold leadership of my friend, Karol Nawrocki, President of Poland, major progress is being made towards establishing a US Army base in Poland,” Trump said Sept. 17.
