BUCHAREST – The Romanian Ministry of National Defense (MApN) scrambled two F-16 Fighting Falcon jets on Friday morning after radar systems detected an aerial target, identified as a Russian drone, breaching national airspace in the country’s southeast.
The incident, which occurred around 10:00 a.m. local time, triggered two separate emergency alerts for residents in the northern part of Tulcea County. Authorities warned of the potential for “falling objects” as the military tracked the drone maneuvering near the Chilia Veche area, just across the border from the Ukrainian port of Vylkove.
According to a statement from the Ministry of Defense, the F-16s were deployed from the 86th Air Base in Borcea to monitor the situation and verify the drone’s flight path.
- 10:00 a.m.: Radar systems pick up the target north of Tulcea.
- 10:05 a.m.: The first RO-ALERT message is sent to residents, advising them to seek shelter in basements or civil protection centers.
- 11:00 a.m.: A second alert is issued as the military loses radar contact, suggesting a possible impact.
The Romanian Army has confirmed that the drone likely crashed on Romanian territory. “Based on the information available so far, it is possible that drone debris may have fallen in an uninhabited area near Chilia Veche,” the ministry stated.
Specialized search teams have been dispatched to the region to locate the wreckage and conduct a technical analysis.
