A Romanian F-16 fighter jet shot down a Russian drone over the Black Sea near the port city of Sulina on Sunday morning, July 26, 2026.
The unmanned vehicle entered Romania's airspace without authorization.
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According to the Romanian Ministry of Defense, the drone operated over Romanian territorial waters within the Sulina-Chulia area.
The incident triggered a falling debris warning for residents in the Tulcea district, which directly borders Ukraine.
Third Consecutive Day of Violations
The interception marks the third consecutive day of airspace violations. Similar incidents were handled by Romanian F-16 pilots on Friday and Saturday mornings.
On Friday, a drone was downed near Padina, located roughly 114 kilometers northeast of Bucharest.
Defense officials reported that Friday's drone was initially detected near the coastal town of Sulina at 9:39 a.
m.
It flew through national airspace for nearly an hour and a half before being shot down over an uninhabited area at 11:02 a.
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m.
Romanian President Nicușor Dan announced on X that a public prosecution investigation identified the Friday projectile as an Iranian-designed Shahed drone.
This model is frequently utilized by Russia in Ukraine. Investigations into the Saturday and Sunday drones remain ongoing.
"It is unacceptable and intolerable that the Russian Federation continues to violate Romania's airspace, which is simultaneously the airspace of NATO and the European Union," stated President Dan.
He emphasized that the country takes these security threats seriously alongside its international allies.
"Such actions are unacceptable and we take them, together with our allies, extremely seriously," President Dan added.
Following the incursions, Foreign Minister Oana țoiu summoned the Russian ambassador to respond to the incidents.
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The defense ministry noted that Russia has violated Romanian airspace 33 times since invading Ukraine in early 2022, including a May incident in Galati that injured two people.
