A Spanish F-18 fighter operating as part of NATO’s air policing mission shot down a drone after it illegally entered Romanian airspace early Sunday, Romania’s Defence Ministry said. It was the fourth unmanned aircraft shot down over the country this year.
Martin O’Donnell, a US Army colonel and spokesperson for NATO’s military headquarters, said the alliance remained constantly vigilant and prepared to respond to any threat.
‘Additional details regarding Sunday’s incident remain under investigation, but the drone appears to be Russian,’ he said.
Romania shares a 614-kilometre land border with Ukraine and has repeatedly reported Russian drones entering its airspace over the past four years. The country has also reported mines drifting into the Black Sea across important trade and energy routes.
Romania’s Defence Ministry did not confirm the drone’s origin. It said the aircraft was detected by radar after entering Romanian airspace from neighbouring Moldova, about 24 kilometres north of the southeastern city of Galați.
The F-18, deployed to Romania as part of a Spanish NATO contingent, established radar contact with the drone and received authorization to engage, the ministry said. The aircraft was shot down safely at 5:01am local time.
Fragments of the destroyed drone appeared to have fallen in an uninhabited area between two villages, according to the ministry.
In July, Romanian F-16 pilots shot down three Russian drones that had entered the country’s airspace. It was the first time Romania had destroyed Russian drones following dozens of reported incursions since Russia launched its full-scale war against Ukraine.
In May, a Russian drone crashed into an apartment building in Galați during an overnight Russian attack on neighbouring Ukraine, injuring two people.
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