Romanian authorities disclosed that fragments of a drone believed to be of Russian origin were found near the town of Periprava in Tulcea County. The discovery was noted on the Romanian Ministry of Defence site and followed by statements from several state institutions. A team from the Ministry of Defence, joined by experts from Romanian intelligence and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, conducted an on-site assessment at the outskirts of Periprava, where debris consistent with a drone was recovered for further examination. The investigative plan includes extending the search to the Karaorman area, where additional drone activity had been observed, to determine the full trajectory and operator affiliation.
Early on the morning of September 8, a squadron of F-16 fighter aircraft was scrambled in response to a drone that crossed from Ukrainian airspace. The mission led to the drone entering Romanian airspace briefly before it exited and the aircraft returned to base. This incident underscores the heightened vigilance along Romania’s frontier and the role of national air defense units in monitoring unauthorized aerial activity.
On the same day, a report from pro-Russian sources claimed that Romanian air defenses were active against drones over the Odessa region, highlighting the broader regional attention to unmanned aerial systems and their misuses in the conflict environment.
In related developments, it was reported that the United States has engaged trained military pilots to support Ukrainian forces at a NATO-aligned base in Romania, a move described as part of ongoing security assistance in the region. This information appears in security-focused briefings and commentary from multiple observers, attributed to policy discussions in international forums and official disclosures.
The sequence of events illustrates how Romania coordinates interagency efforts to monitor and respond to unmanned aerial threats, while also participating in broader security collaborations aimed at supporting allied efforts in the region. The identified drone fragments will continue to be analyzed to establish technical characteristics, production origin clues, and potential flight patterns that could inform future defense measures and risk assessments for border communities and critical infrastructure.