Spanish F-18s Scrambled Over Drone Alert Near Romania-Ukraine Border

Two Spanish F-18s took off from Romania during the night after radar operators detected two flying objects near the Ukrainian city of Vylkove, close to the countries’ Black Sea border. The objects did not enter Romanian airspace, but the alert prompted residents in the area to seek shelter and stay away from windows.

Romania’s Defense Ministry said the radar detected the objects at 11:30 p.m. The Spanish jets, assigned to NATO’s air-policing mission, departed Mihail Kogalniceanu air base 13 minutes later to monitor the situation. Their pilots reported explosions on Ukrainian territory, while Romanian authorities said there had been no incursion into the country’s airspace. The alert ended at 1:15 a.m.

The incident followed several interventions by the Spanish F-18s during August as drones approached Romanian airspace. On Aug. 16, a Spanish F-18 already in the air on a surveillance mission shot down a drone that had violated Romanian airspace.

Romanian Defense Minister Radu Miruta also announced that Slovakia would send low-altitude radars and personnel to Romania to help watch the eastern border. The deployment forms part of a request for assistance from NATO and the European Union.

A drone attack was reported the same morning at the Orlivka border crossing in Ukraine. The crossing, where thousands of Ukrainians fled during Russia’s invasion in February 2022, is currently not operating.