Two Spanish fighter jets activated in Romania due to a Russian drone alert

Two Spanish F18 fighters deployed at the Mihail Kogalniceanu Base in Romania, as part of the NATO Air Policing mission, were activated this Thursday at dawn to monitor a group of "aerial targets" operating north of the town of Chilia Veche, in Ukraine, near the border with Romania.

According to the Romanian Ministry of Defense on X, a Romanian radar detected this group of "aerial targets" and the Romanian authorities sent an alert to the population at 04:41 (local time). The Spanish fighters took off to monitor the situation, but the air alert ended at 05:44 (local time) and no incursions into national airspace were reported.

Spain is collaborating in the NATO mission in Romania with around 200 troops, seven F18 fighters, an A400M, and a radar. Three NH90 helicopters will be added to these in October. The presence of Russian drones in allied airspace has increased significantly: the Spanish Armed Forces have recorded eighteen alerts between August and the current part of September in the mission in Romania. In fact, two Spanish fighters shot down one of these devices that had penetrated Romanian airspace on August 16.

These types of NATO surveillance operations on the eastern flank are becoming increasingly common. The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, described these incidents, attributed to Russian hybrid warfare, as the "new normal" for Europe.

Also this Thursday, the Polish air forces carried out "preventive" operations due to Russia's missile attacks against Ukraine. However, no violations of Poland's airspace occurred.