Unidentified Aerial Object Possibly of Russian Origin Breaches Romanian Airspace

An unidentified aerial object entered Romanian airspace late on October 19, prompting the Romanian military to scramble aircraft for interception.

According to the Romanian Ministry of Defense, radar systems detected a “small aerial target” around 2:30 AM in the vicinity of the Black Sea. In response to the target’s trajectory toward the national border, Romania deployed fighter jets for monitoring purposes.

Four aircraft were dispatched: two Romanian F-16s and two Spanish F-18s. The radar signals indicated a potential breach of Romanian airspace around 4:00 AM in the Gura Portiței area, located north of the major port city of Constanța. Authorities recommended declaring an air alert for the region.

The Ministry reported that the object had penetrated Romanian airspace by 19 kilometers. However, the fighter jets did not visually identify the target. It disappeared from radar approximately south of Codjalak around 4:30 AM. The air alert was lifted at 5:10 AM.

Following the incident, the Ministry of Defense ordered an investigation into the area where the object may have fallen.

Earlier, on October 17, residents of Constanța received a Ro-Alert message about potential falling objects, leading to the deployment of Romanian F-16 jets. The radar detected a small aerial target 150 km east of Mihail Kogălniceanu, prompting air policing measures. By 7 PM, the target crossed Romania’s border and advanced 14 km into the country before losing radar contact. The alert was lifted at 8:15 PM.