Spanish F-18 jets scramble in Romania during Russian drone strikes near Danube border

Overnight scramble in Dobruja

Two Spanish F-18 fighter jets deployed at the Mihail Kogălniceanu 57th Air Base in Romania scrambled shortly after midnight on 26 September 2026 following radar detection of an aerial target in Ukrainian airspace near the Danube border town of Vylkove. Romania's National Military Command Centre notified the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations, prompting a RO-Alert notification to residents across the northern sector of Tulcea County at 00:15 local time. The Ukrainian locality, located across the Danube from a recognized biosphere reserve, faced Russian drone strikes against electrical infrastructure during the night. Operating as part of NATO's enhanced Air Policing mission, the Spanish aircraft conducted monitoring patrols to protect allied airspace.

The Romanian Ministry of National Defence confirmed the operational deployment on Saturday morning.

The radar surveillance system of the Ministry of National Defence detected during the night of 25 to 26 September an aerial target moving in the vicinity of the locality of Vâlkove, on Ukrainian territory, near the border with Romania.

The air alert concluded at 01:30 without any confirmed entry of drones or missiles into Romanian national airspace, and both F-18 aircraft returned safely to their base.

Sequence of border air alerts

The overnight operation was the 21st quick-reaction scramble for the current rotation of Spain's Paznic Tactical Air Detachment. Air activity along the Danube has prompted multiple alerts in late September. On the night of 23 to 24 September, Romanian authorities issued an alert at 04:41 after detecting targets near Chilia Veche, 50 kilometres north of Vylkove. Spanish F-18s monitored the area until the alert concluded at 05:44, while defence officials reported that one small drone had crossed into Romanian airspace for approximately four minutes before crashing near Solca in Suceava County without causing casualties or fire. An IAR-330 SOCAT helicopter from the 95th Air Base in Bacău subsequently took off at 07:21 to inspect that crash site.

On Friday morning, 25 September, Romanian radar detected another target 20 kilometres east of Galați, leading two Romanian Air Force F-16 fighters from the 86th Air Base in Borcea to scramble as emergency alerts were issued to eastern Galați and northern Tulcea. On Saturday morning, 26 September, Romanian authorities opened an inquiry after witnesses found a drone fragment on the coast at Agigea. Similar debris has reached Romanian beaches in recent months, including an August incident in Olimp where military teams evacuated the beach to safely detonate a fragment carrying explosives.

Spanish deployment and border statistics

Official Romanian defence data updated through 25 September recorded 145 attacks in close proximity to Romania's frontier since the start of the war in Ukraine, resulting in 47 unauthorized incursions into Romanian air or maritime territory. Spanish Armed Forces units assigned to the NATO air policing mission registered 18 emergency alerts between August and late September. During an earlier engagement on 16 August, two Spanish F-18 fighters intercepted and shot down a drone that crossed into Romanian airspace.

Spain maintains approximately 200 military personnel, seven F-18 fighter jets, one A400M transport aircraft, and an air surveillance radar system at Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base. In October 2026, three Spanish NH90 helicopters are scheduled to join the detachment to support border operations. On 25 September, Finnish and Swedish F-18 and Gripen fighters also conducted quick-reaction flights over the Baltic Sea after a Russian formation including a Tu-134 transport, MiG-31, and Su-30 aircraft flew without transponders.