Spanish EF-18 fighters scrambled in Romania after drone enters airspace

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Spanish EF-18 fighters scrambled in Romania

During the early hours of 20 August, Spanish Air and Space Force EF-18 fighters deployed to Romania were placed on alert after a group of aerial targets was detected near the Ukrainian border. The situation later resulted in a drone entering Romanian airspace, in another incident that tested the surveillance and response capabilities deployed on NATO’s eastern flank.

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According to Romania’s Ministry of Defence, military radar systems detected a group of aerial targets north of Tulcea County at 02:23. In response, two Spanish F-18s were dispatched to monitor events, while the Romanian Air Force deployed an IAR-330 SOCAT helicopter on an aerial reconnaissance mission.

At 03:21, one of the drones entered Romanian national airspace, around 13 kilometres east of the city of Galați. Three minutes later, the IAR-330 SOCAT crew reported that the target had struck the ground roughly four kilometres north-east of Grindu, in Tulcea County, within an uninhabited area. The impact started a fire that extinguished itself, with no casualties or material damage reported.

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Romanian response and drone investigation

The incident triggered the activation of public warning measures in the affected area, while military and search teams headed towards the impact site. Specialists from the Romanian Ministry of Defence and Border Police subsequently inspected and secured the area, concluding that the drone wreckage posed no explosion risk. Border Police removed the material to allow the investigation to continue, while the case was referred to the Public Prosecutor’s Office attached to the Constanța Court of Appeal. The air alert ended at 03:52.

For its part, Spain’s Defence Staff confirmed that a new “Alpha Scramble” had been activated for the F-18s of the “Paznic” Tactical Air Detachment at approximately 02:30. The organisation stated that the response demonstrated the permanent readiness of Spanish assets deployed in Romania, coordinated between the Bucharest Control Centre and the Combined Air Operations Centre in Torrejón.

NATO’s eastern flank air policing

The episode again underlines the importance of NATO’s enhanced air policing deployments on the Alliance’s eastern flank, particularly given the possibility that drones linked to operations in Ukraine could approach or accidentally enter the airspace of member states. In this instance, Spanish EF-18s operated alongside Romanian assets to monitor the situation and respond to the incursion, with no consequences reported for the local population.

Featured image: EMAD.