Romania scrambles F-16s as Russian drone enters airspace during Ukrainian Danube Port attacks

Romania again scrambled F-16 fighter jets and issued a public alert on Wednesday evening, February 25, after a Russian drone briefly entered its airspace during renewed attacks on Ukrainian Danube ports, the Defense Ministry said. Authorities reported no casualties or damage.

According to the Ministry of Defense, the Russian Federation launched new aerial strikes on February 25 targeting Ukrainian port infrastructure along the Danube River. Romanian military radar systems detected a drone operating near the national airspace, prompting the preventive activation of air defense systems.

Thus, at approximately 5:50 p.m., two F-16 fighter jets stationed at the Fetești Air Base were deployed in line with standard air policing procedures. At 6:07 p.m., authorities issued a RO-Alert warning to residents in northern Tulcea County.

“The unmanned aerial vehicle briefly entered national airspace in the area of the locality of Sfântu Gheorghe, without endangering people’s lives, and exited north of Sulina, flying only over territorial waters,” reads the ministry’s statement. “Alert measures ended around 6:45 p.m., and no aerial vehicle debris was identified in the area.”

The ministry strongly condemned the continued Russian attacks on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure, calling them a serious violation of international law and a threat to regional security.

Romania has seen over a dozen drone incursions in its airspace since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Back in January, for example, fragments believed to be from a drone were recovered from a household in Vrancea county, eastern Romania.

(Photo source: Mapn.ro)