Another Drone Over Romania: Intercepted and Shot Down by F-16 Fighter Jets

Acting Romanian Defense Minister Radu-Dinel Miruta announced that an unauthorized drone violating Romanian airspace was shot down by the military on Saturday morning.

Saturday Morning Incursion and Interception

Acting Romanian Defense Minister Radu-Dinel Miruta wrote on Facebook that another drone illegally violating Romanian airspace was shot down this morning at 8:34 by the Romanian military, 9.6 km west of the city of Sfantu Gheorghe in central Romania.

On Saturday, July 25, at 8:22, radar surveillance systems of the Romanian Ministry of National Defense detected another unauthorized penetration of the country’s airspace by a drone operating near the border with Ukraine, the Romanian Ministry of National Defense stated in a morning communique.

Two Romanian F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft patrolling the country’s airspace intercepted the aerial target and carried out standard identification and neutralization procedures, according to the statement. The unmanned aerial vehicle was safely shot down in an uninhabited area near the border.

Teams from the Romanian Ministry of National Defense have been dispatched to the drone crash site to investigate the matter. The ministry added that it continues to closely monitor the situation in the airspace and cooperates closely with allied structures.

A Similar Incident Occurred the Day Before

A similar incident occurred in Romania on Friday. At the time, President NicusorDan stated that an F-16 fighter jet shot down an unmanned aerial vehicle that had entered Romanian airspace, assuring that the region where the drone was shot down is uninhabited.

NATO confirmed the drone incursion on Friday, noting that an investigation was launched and the Alliance is in constant contact with Romanian authorities. The statement added that Romania and other states are in the process of purchasing ground-based interceptor systems. Bucharest purchased the MEROPS anti-drone system, designed to intercept small unmanned aerial systems.

The Romanian Ministry of Defense reported that the drone was shot down by a missile fired from an F-16 over an uninhabited area near the village of Padina in Buzau County in the east of the country. Chief of the General Staff of the Romanian Armed Forces, Gen. Gheorghita Vlad, announced that the fighter pilot identified the UAV as a Shahed, a drone model used by the Russian army for attacks on Ukraine.

President Dan’s announcement was published around the same time an air raid alert was declared in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev due to a Russian attack.

First Such Case and Regional Context

The AFP agency recalled on Friday that unmanned aerial vehicle incursions into Romanian airspace occur relatively frequently, but this is the first time a drone has been shot down by the Romanian air force. In 2025, Romania adopted a law enabling the shooting down and interception of unmanned aerial vehicles, and these regulations were applied for the first time on Friday.

Romania and the European Union hold Russia responsible for the drone incursions, as it wages an aggressive war against Ukraine.

One of the most serious incidents of this type in Romania occurred during the night of May 28-29, when an explosive-laden drone crashed into a residential house in Galati near the Ukrainian border, injuring two people.