---
title: "Two drones were shot down by F-16s in Romanian airspace over the Black Sea"
url: https://moldova1.md/p/87910/two-drones-were-shot-down-by-f-16s-in-romanian-airspace-over-the-black-sea
published: 2026-10-17T17:13:07Z
language: en
author: "Bogdan Nigai"
section: "International"
source: moldova1.md
---

# Two drones were shot down by F-16s in Romanian airspace over the Black Sea

> Two drones were shot down by Romanian Air Force F-16 fighter jets after entering the country’s airspace on Saturday, October 17. Both drones were intercepted and destroyed over Romania’s territorial waters in the Black Sea, the Ministry of National Defence in Bucharest announced.

![](https://storage.moldova1.md/images/64e049b1-33bd-44d1-95f6-fbd5d2f1c685.jpg)

Two drones were shot down by Romanian Air Force F-16 fighter jets after entering the country’s airspace on Saturday, October 17. Both drones were intercepted and destroyed over Romania’s territorial waters in the Black Sea, the Ministry of National Defence in Bucharest announced.

According to the institution, radar surveillance systems detected a group of aerial targets moving southwest, approximately 120 kilometers east of Snake Island.

At 17:43, the Romanian Air Force scrambled two F-16 aircraft on air policing missions from the 86th Air Base at Borcea to intervene.

The first target entered Romanian airspace at 17:59 and was shot down two minutes later, at 18:01, by one of the F-16s.

In the same minute, a second target entered Romanian airspace. It was shot down at 18:05 by the other fighter jet.

The Ministry of Defence states that both targets were identified as drones and were destroyed over Romanian territorial waters.

> Two Romanian Air Force F-16 aircraft, conducting Air Policing missions, were scrambled from the 86th Air Base Borcea at 17:43, after radar surveillance systems detected a group of aerial targets flying approximately 120 kilometres east of Snake Island, heading southwest. At 17:59, the first target entered Romanian airspace and was shot down by one of the F-16 aircraft at 18:01. A second target entered Romanian airspace at 18:01 and was shot down by the other F-16 aircraft at 18:05. Both aerial targets were identified as drones and were shot down over Romanian territorial waters. Further information will be provided upon completion of the mission. — MApN (@MApNRomania) October 17, 2026

This is not the first such incident in Romania. Throughout 2026, drones repeatedly violated the country’s airspace, particularly in the Danube and Black Sea regions, amid Russian attacks on Ukraine. In July, Romanian F-16 fighter jets shot down three drones, while in August, a Spanish F-18 deployed on a NATO air policing mission neutralized another drone near Galați. In 2025, Romania passed a law that, among other provisions, authorizes the destruction of drones that illegally enter its airspace.