In Romania and the Baltic countries, alerts were announced at night and fighter jets were scrambled
Kyiv • UNN
Air raid alerts were announced in Romania, Estonia and Latvia because of drones. NATO fighter jets were scrambled for monitoring; no incursion into Romania was recorded.
In Romania and two Baltic countries, an alert was declared overnight and fighter jets were scrambled, UNN reports, citing Romania’s Ministry of Defense and ERR.
Details
According to Romania’s Ministry of Defense, "the radar surveillance system of the Ministry of National Defense detected two aerial targets at 11:30 p.m. on Monday, August 31, 24 km northeast of Vylkove, Ukraine, near the border with Romania."
"Two F-18 aircraft of the Spanish Aerospace Force, serving as part of the Enhanced Air Policing mission at the 57th Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base, took off to monitor the situation at 11:43 p.m. At 12:05 a.m., an IAR-330 PUMA SOCAT helicopter of the Romanian Air Force was also scrambled," the statement said.
As noted, the population was alerted, and at 11:56 p.m. a RO-Alert message was sent, covering the northeastern part of Tulcea County.
"The pilots reported explosions on the territory of Ukraine. No intrusion into national airspace was reported. The air raid alert ended at 1:15 a.m.," Romania’s Ministry of Defense said.
According to ERR, during the night of September 1, the Estonian Defence Forces also sent warnings of a possible air threat, initially to residents of two counties and then to six more counties. The alert was canceled shortly before 6 a.m.
According to the military, several drones entered Estonian airspace. Turkish fighter jets participating in the NATO mission to patrol the airspace of the Baltic countries were scrambled to search for them, ERR reported.
Residents of two counties received the first threat notification at around 3:11 a.m. local time. Some received the information slightly later. At 3:48 a.m., the warning was extended to six more counties.
Colonel Uku Arold, head of the Strategic Communications Department of the Estonian Defence Forces, said that the military had detected drones moving along the eastern border of Estonia and Latvia, some of which had entered Estonian airspace.
"Drones were detected moving parallel to Estonia’s eastern border, as well as Latvia’s eastern border, and they entered Estonian territory, so we also declared an alert," Arold said.
According to him, Turkish fighter jets participating in the NATO mission to patrol Baltic airspace were scrambled in response to the threat.
On Tuesday night, a warning of a possible threat from the air was also declared in Latvia.
At around 2:00 a.m., residents of Ludza Municipality received the message, and at 2:25 a.m. the Latvian military reported that the warning had been canceled. Later, at 3:37 a.m., a threat was declared in Alūksne Municipality.
In response to the threat, NATO fighter jets patrolling the airspace of the Baltic countries were activated. At around 4:20 a.m., the Latvian authorities reported that the threat in Alūksne Municipality had passed. Meanwhile, the fighter jets continued searching for drones, now over Estonian territory.
Latvia has already encountered drones several times this year. In June and August, NATO fighter jets shot down drones that had entered the country’s airspace on two occasions.
The Finnish Defence Forces again restricted traffic in the eastern part of the Gulf of Finland.
"A temporary restriction zone for aviation and shipping was introduced in the eastern part of the Gulf of Finland early Tuesday morning," the Finnish Defence Forces said on social media. According to the military, the measure was preventive and intended to ensure the safety of third parties, as well as create conditions for the authorities to operate if it became necessary to counter possible drones.
In recent weeks, air and maritime traffic in the eastern part of the Gulf of Finland has already been restricted several times.
Estonian authorities note that, amid Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, there is a possibility that drones could deviate from their course and enter Estonian airspace.