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A Spanish F-18 fighter operating in NATO airspace patrols shot down a drone that violated Romanian airspace, marking the fourth such incident in Romania this year, the country’s Defense Ministry said.
Romanian authorities said radar detected the drone flying from neighboring Moldova, about 24 kilometers north of the southeastern city of Galați. The F-18 crew tracked the target and received authorization to destroy it. The drone was shot down at 5:01 a.m., with debris falling in an uninhabited area between two villages.
Romania has repeatedly faced airspace violations by Russian drones during Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine. The country shares a 614-kilometer land border with Ukraine.
According to Reuters, Romanian F-16s shot down three Russian drones in July, marking the first time the country had used its fighter jets to destroy such targets.
Earlier this year, a Russian drone crashed into a residential building in Galați during a nighttime attack on Ukraine, injuring two people.
The latest incident comes after drone debris was found near the beach in Costinești, around 160 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. Police evacuated beachgoers and cordoned off the area after a tourist spotted the object drifting toward the shore.
