WHEN brave Nato pilots intercepted daring Russian fighter jets threatening to spark World War III by breaching Estonian airspace, the last thing they expected to see was a friendly wave.

The two Italian F-35s took part in a nailbiting 12-minute stand-off pursuing Vladimir Putin 's nuclear-capable MiG-31 fighter jets - in the Russian tyrant's latest attempt to put Nato to the test.

The chilling ordeal unfolded when three Russian warplanes entered Estonia's airspace on September 19 before circling over Vaindloo Island.

The unprecedented manoeuvre prompted Nato 's most advanced fighter jets, dubbed "Ghost 1" and "Ghost 2", to immediately set off from Amari airbase, about 50km from the capital Tallinn.

The three MiG-31s had their transponders turned off - and were therefore not i

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