Spanish F-18 Downs Unidentified Drone in Romanian Airspace

A Spanish F-18 fighter jet operating from Romania's 57th Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base shot down an unidentified drone that entered Romanian airspace from Moldova on Sunday morning, August 16. The incident occurred at approximately 4:44 a.m. local time, about 24 kilometers north of Galați, with the Spanish jet establishing radar contact and receiving clearance to engage the target.

The drone was brought down at 5:01 a.m. over an unpopulated area between the villages of Băleni and Cudalbi in Galați County, and the local air raid alert was subsequently lifted at 5:20 a.m. Acting Defense Minister Radu Miruță praised the Spanish pilots and Romanian military personnel for their vigilance and rapid response, emphasizing the importance of allied solidarity in ensuring the country's security.

This marks the fourth instance of an intruding drone being shot down over Romania, following previous incidents involving drone fragments discovered near the Ukrainian border and on the Black Sea coast. The country has reported over 30 drone violations since strikes on Ukrainian Danube River ports began, with Romanian F-16 fighter jets intercepting and shooting down incoming targets on three separate occasions in late July.

Brief written by urgent.news from Kyiv Post's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.