A Spanish F-18 fighter jet on a NATO air policing mission has shot down a drone that entered Romanian airspace illegally, Romania’s Defense Ministry said on Sunday.
This is the fourth time this year that Romania shot down an unmanned aircraft.
NATO member Romania has a 614-kilometre border with Ukraine and has previously reported Russian drones entering its airspace several times since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine.
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The Defense Ministry said its radar had tracked the drone crossing into Romania from neighboring Moldova, some 24 kilometers north of the southeastern city of Galati.
The Spanish F-18 gained radar contact with the drone and was cleared to engage it, the ministry said. The drone was shot down at 05:01 . Fragments It reportedly dropped from the aircraft in an uninhabited area between two villages.
Romanian F-16 fighter jets downed three Russian drones that had entered the country’s airspace in July.
Earlier this year, an overnight attack on neighboring Ukraine caused a Russian drone to crash into an apartment building in Galati, injuring two people.