Belarus Scrambles Fighter Jet for the First Time to Intercept Russian Drone

According to Belarusian monitoring groups, Belarusian Air Force fighter jet attempted to destroy a Russian military target that entered Belarusian territory in the Yelsk district during a Russian attack on Ukraine on August 29.

The reports state that after Russian “Shahed” drone entered Belarusian airspace, a Belarusian Air Force fighter jet followed the air target for about 20 minutes. Around 4 a.m. local time, residents in the Yelsk district of the Gomel region heard at least two explosions and observed a bright flash in the sky.

This is likely the first recorded instance of a Belarusian Air Force fighter jet attempting to destroy a Russian Shahed drone that breached Belarusian airspace.

It’s been reported before that Shahed drones launched by Russian forces in aerial attacks on Ukraine had intruded Belarusian territory. On July 16, two Shahed drones flew into Belarusian airspace twice in a day and one of them has traveled more than 300 kilometers, monitoring channels reported.