The aerial surveillance system of the Romanian Air Force detected a balloon on Tuesday, February 14, around 12.30 local time.
A small aerial target, with the characteristics of a weather balloon, which was evolving at an altitude of about 11,000 meters in the national airspace, in the South-East of Romania.
The Romanian authorities applied all the standard procedures from the moment the object was detected, and two MiG-21 LanceR aircraft of the Romanian Air Force from the Air Police combat service under NATO command took off from the 86th Air Base Fete~ti, around 12:40, being directed to the area where the air target was reported.
The crews of the two aircraft did not confirm the presence of the aerial target, neither visually nor on the on board radars.
The aircraft were kept in the area for approximately 30 minutes, for the full clarification of the air situation, after which they returned to the air base.