F-16 downs drone in Romania's airspace for first time

Update: Romania's Chief of Defense, General Gheorghiță Vlad, said the decision to engage the drone was taken within NATO's Air Policing mission, as the incident unfolded amid a complex security situation in the Black Sea region, including Russian attacks on southern Ukraine and the earlier incident involving a coal ship, Biziday.ro reported.

According to the military, the drone was initially engaged by two Italian Eurofighter Typhoon jets deployed to Romania under NATO's Air Policing mission, but the missile missed its target. Two Romanian F-16 fighter jets that had taken off from Fetești later shot down the drone over an uninhabited area in Buzău county.

The drone was tracked continuously for more than an hour from the moment it entered Romanian airspace. The military officials explained that it could not be engaged earlier because visual identification was required and the aircraft had to wait until the target reached an area where there was no risk to the civilian population.

The officials added that the drone did not fly near military bases or the Cernavodă nuclear power plant. Based on the pilots' observations, it appeared to be a Shahed-type drone, which typically carries an explosive payload, although its exact origin and whether it was armed have not yet been confirmed. Search teams are continuing to recover the drone's remains as well as the Romanian and Italian missiles fired during the operation.

In separate news, interim defense minister Radu Miruță told Euronews Romania that the drone shot down near Padina was "one of the standard drones the Russians use to carry out various operations" in Ukraine.

Initial story: A Romanian Air Force F-16 fighter jet shot down a drone that entered the country's airspace on Friday morning, July 24, marking the first time Romania has intercepted and destroyed a drone over its own territory. President Nicușor Dan and interim defense minister Radu Miruțǎ confirmed the incident.

“In around 11:00 this morning, a Romanian pilot flying an F-16 shot down a drone that had entered our country's airspace. The area was uninhabited, so the pilot was able to fire without any risk. Teams from the relevant institutions are now investigating the area to establish all the details of the incident," president Dan announced.