Fighter jets scramble after drone enters NATO nation’s airspace, gets shot down by Eurofighter: Russia takes the blame
NATO fighter jets scrambled after an unidentified drone entered Latvian airspace, with an Italian Eurofighter shooting it down over northeastern Latvia.
“NATO is ensuring that our skies are protected,” NATO Spokesperson Allison Hart said. “This morning, we saw Italian Eurofighters based in Lithuania and Turkish F-16s out of Estonia scramble, with one Eurofighter downing a drone over Latvian airspace.”
Two Italian Eurofighters based at Šiauliai Air Base in Lithuania and two Turkish F-16s operating from Ämari Air Base in Estonia responded to the incursion under NATO command.
“After positive identification, one of the Italian Eurofighters neutralized the potential threat over an unpopulated area,” NATO said.
“Day after day, NATO is ready and able to react to any potential threats, 24/7, to safeguard our territory & protect our people,” Hart added.
Latvian military issues airspace alert
Latvia’s National Armed Forces declared a potential airspace threat at 4 a.m. local time across the municipalities of Augšdaugava, Preiļi, Rēzekne, Balvi and Alūksne, prompting NATO Baltic Air Patrol fighters to scramble. Authorities urged residents in the affected areas to remain indoors and seek shelter.
The Latvian military said it and NATO allies were continuously monitoring the country’s airspace and had strengthened defenses along the eastern border by deploying additional units.
The military later confirmed that NATO Baltic Air Patrol fighters had shot down the drone over Balvi. Latvia’s Defense Ministry said the aircraft was brought down near Rugāji, close to the Russian border.
A Latvian military spokesperson told local television that the drone crashed in a forested area, with no injuries or property damage reported. Emergency crews were dispatched to the site.
The airspace alerts ended at 4:50 a.m.
Russia takes the blame
Latvia’s Defense Ministry said on X that NATO “fighter jets have successfully shot down a foreign unmanned aerial vehicle that had entered Latvia as a result of Russian electromagnetic warfare.”
The military initially did not identify the drone’s origin. However, its reference to Russian electronic warfare in the Balvi region suggests the aircraft could have been a Ukrainian drone diverted by Russian interference.
“As long as Russia’s aggression in Ukraine continues, a recurrence of cases where foreign drones enter or approach Latvian airspace is possible,” Latvia’s military said.
Latvian Defence Minister Raivis Melnis said the decision to shoot down the drone was made to protect civilians. He said its origin and type could not yet be determined and that investigators would need to recover and examine the debris.
A NATO spokesperson likewise said the drone could not yet be confirmed as Russian or Ukrainian.
Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže thanked “Italian allies” for “maintaining integrity of NATO airspace” after the shootdown.
Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs said authorities are still searching for the debris. A Latvian military spokesperson said the location was known but would not be disclosed, adding that the drone had been shot down at high altitude, potentially scattering debris over a wide area.
The mission behind the interception
The Italian aircraft were F-2000A Typhoons assigned to Task Force Air “Baltic Thunder III,” operating under NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission and controlled by the alliance’s Combined Air Operations Centre in Uedem, Germany.
The Italian deployment began with its first scramble.
The shootdown marked the first time an Italian Typhoon fired its weapons during an interception under a NATO mission. It was unclear which weapon was used, although Italian fighters on Quick Reaction Alert typically carry AIM-120 AMRAAM and IRIS-T missiles along with a 27 mm Mauser BK-27 cannon.
Baltic Air Policing is a peacetime NATO mission protecting the airspace of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The three Baltic states share borders with Russia and do not operate their own fighter jets.
The mission has traditionally focused on Russian aircraft approaching or entering Baltic airspace. Drone incursions along NATO’s eastern flank, however, have increased since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
A war spilling over NATO’s borders
The incident came a day after Romanian F-16s and Spanish F-18s scrambled over drone activity near Romania’s border with Ukraine, Hart said.
The latest incident also comes amid an intensifying drone war between Russia and Ukraine.
Ukrainian forces struck the Russian port of Ust-Luga in the Leningrad region, one of Russia’s largest oil and gas export terminals and more than 800 kilometers from Ukraine. The regional governor said the attack briefly started a fire.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said its air defenses intercepted 553 Ukrainian drones across 18 Russian regions, occupied Crimea and the waters of the Azov and Black seas.
Ukrainska Pravda reported that the shortest route to Ust-Luga passes near Latvia and Estonia’s eastern borders. That flight path could help explain why drones targeting Russian infrastructure along the Baltic coast sometimes enter NATO airspace, particularly when Russian electronic jamming pushes them off course.
The shootdown was at least the third time that a NATO fighter has destroyed a drone over Latvia. It was also part of a broader pattern of drone incursions across the Baltic states, Finland and Romania.