AIR crews from the region are to spend the festive season many miles from home - but it looks as if they will be enjoying a white Christmas.

Snow is already thick on the ground in Lithuania, where personnel from RAF Leeming are taking on a round-the-clock quick-reaction alert role.

And with temperatures down to -5C and plunging to -15C at night, the snow is already 7in deep.

Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia became full members of Nato earlier this year and asked the alliance to bolster their air forces with fighter aircraft to provide them with a credible air defence presence.

Nato agreed to provide a small force of fighter aircraft from other alliance countries, with Belgium providing F16s from April for three months, followed by Denmark for a further three months.

Britain has now become the third country to contribute fighters and four Tornado F3s will remain there prior to a handover to the Norwegians in January.

RAF Leuchars personnel have been deployed to cover the initial six weeks of the commitment, but Leeming-based personnel are now deploying to take over the task.

They are based at the former Soviet Zokniai air force base, near Siauliai, in north-western Lithuania.

The Tornado F3 deployment was slightly delayed to enable improvement work to be completed at the base. Hard-standing areas were modified and four environmentally controlled aircraft shelters have been installed.