Two Spanish F-18s scrambled as radar tracks aerial target near Romania's Ukraine border

Radar contact near the Ukrainian border

Romania's Ministry of National Defence (MApN) said its radar surveillance picked up an aerial target on Saturday, 17 October, moving over Ukrainian territory toward the Romanian frontier north of Plauru in Tulcea County. Two F-18 fighters of the Spanish Air and Space Force took off from Air Base 57 Mihail Kogălniceanu in the night of 16 to 17 October, according to the ministry and Romanian outlets. The ministry said the Spanish aircraft are currently flying Enhanced Air Policing missions. Libertatea and G4Media place the take-off in that night, while Stirile ProTV calls the target a drone, whereas the ministry uses the broader term aerial target.

The communiqué put the detection in these terms:

“On Saturday, 17 October, the Ministry of National Defence radar surveillance system detected an aerial target flying over Ukrainian territory toward the Romanian border, north of Plauru, Tulcea County.”

Alert and airspace

At 01:54 the National Military Command Centre notified the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations, which set off a RO-Alert message to residents of northern Tulcea County. Mediafax reports the message reached phones at that time. Reports differ on when the warning ended: three outlets give 02:30, while Libertatea gives 00:10, a time that falls before the 01:54 message. The ministry said no entry into national airspace had been reported.

Earlier alerts in Tulcea and off the coast

On Thursday morning, 15 October, residents of eastern Tulcea County received a RO-Alert after a drone was detected near Snake Island over the Black Sea. The ministry confirmed then that national airspace had not been entered. Libertatea also reports that a drone entered Romanian airspace above territorial waters off Sulina during the night of 14 to 15 October, and that Romanian fighters and Spanish aircraft under NATO command were sent up. Residents of northern and eastern Tulcea County were warned through the RO-Alert system during that episode.

Since late September

Mediafax reports that at the end of September Spanish F-18s took off on two consecutive nights after targets were detected near the border, including north of Isaccea. In the night of 9 to 10 October, residents of northern Tulcea County received two RO-Alert messages for a target about 20 kilometres north of Periprava. Mediafax describes the 17 October alert as the latest of several similar episodes in northern Dobruja.