A drone that crossed into Romanian airspace from the Black Sea has been shot down near the village of Padina, in what Bucharest says is the first time it has destroyed an intruder over its own territory.
A Romanian Air Force F-16 has shot down a drone that entered the country’s airspace, in the first interception of its kind over Romanian territory.
The aircraft engaged the drone at 11.02am local time on Friday, according to Romania’s defence ministry.
It came down over an uninhabited area near the village of Padina in Buzau County, roughly 114km from Bucharest.
NATO’s Allied Air Command said two Romanian F-16s at Fetesti Air Base and two Italian Eurofighters at Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base scrambled under NATO command and control to identify the aircraft.
“The drone was promptly identified, and after crossing into Romanian airspace, the NATO assets were cleared to engage,” the command said. “Quickly after, the threat was shot down in Romanian airspace.”
Romanian radar first picked up the target at 9.39am, about 20km east of Sulina on the Black Sea coast.
It then tracked inland on a path running Sulina, Braila, Fetesti, Buzau. The two Italian Typhoons, in Romania on NATO air policing duties, went up at 9.48am. The Romanian F-16s followed at 10.56am.
NATO Allied Air Command statement:
“In the morning hours of 24 July 2026, two Romanian F-16s at Feteşti Air Base and two Italian Eurofighters at Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base scrambled under NATO command and control to identify an unknown unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) flying close to Romanian airspace.
The drone was promptly identified, and after crossing into Romanian airspace, the NATO assets were cleared to engage. Quickly after, the threat was shot down in Romanian airspace. This multinational combined effort underlines how NATO is ready and able to react to any potential air threats, 24/7, to safeguard our territory and protect our people.”
Emergency alerts were sent to the public in Tulcea and Braila counties as the drone moved inland.
President Nicusor Dan confirmed the shootdown at a news conference. He said: “We had a drone in our airspace. It was shot down a few minutes ago, around 11am by a Romanian pilot flying an F-16.”
He added that the site was empty of people, so the pilot could open fire without putting anyone at risk, and that teams were on the ground investigating. Neither the president nor the defence ministry has said where the drone came from.
Acting defence minister Radu Miruta praised the crews involved, saying they had neutralised a drone that entered Romanian airspace unlawfully. He also stopped short of naming an origin.
Romania borders Ukraine and has seen repeated incursions since Russia’s full-scale invasion, most of them linked to Russian strikes on Ukrainian ports along the Danube. Jets have been scrambled many times before. Until Friday, none had fired.
In May a Russian drone carrying explosives came down in the city of Galati, starting a fire on the roof of a residential block and injuring two people. The following month a Ukrainian sea drone exploded in the port of Constanta. Ukraine’s navy said it had gone off course because of Russian electronic jamming.
