Continued Presence of Unidentified Drones Over European Countries; Romania’s Largest Airport Disrupted

Kokcha News Agency: Romania’s National Company of Bucharest Airports (CNAB) reported that the presence of an unidentified civilian drone caused disruptions at Henri Coandă International Airport, the country’s largest airport.

According to the report, the crew of a Turkish Airlines Airbus A330, which was preparing to land at the airport, alerted air traffic control to the presence of a small civilian drone. As a precautionary measure, flight operations were suspended for approximately 40 minutes, several aircraft were relocated to secure areas, and nine flights were redirected to another runway.

Romanian authorities are currently working to identify the operator of the drone. It is worth noting that drone flights in the vicinity of both military and civilian airports are prohibited in Romania and carry criminal penalties.

This incident follows an earlier report on September 19, when a civilian drone was spotted approximately 4 kilometers from the same airport.

The disruption in Romania comes amid a wave of similar incidents across Europe. Last week, Denmark was forced to shut down its airports, including Copenhagen Airport, for nearly four hours due to the presence of unidentified drones. Danish officials described the drone flights as part of a “hybrid attack” and, while not explicitly naming Russia, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen pointed the finger at Moscow, calling Russia the “primary threat to European security.” The Kremlin has denied these allegations.

Poland, Estonia, and Norway have also recently reported violations of their airspace by unidentified drones, which they suspect may be of Russian origin.

In response to these incidents, the Polish government has called on its NATO allies to activate Article 4 of the NATO treaty. Article 4 stipulates that NATO members will consult together whenever the territorial integrity, political independence, or security of any member is threatened.

Following Poland’s request, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte announced the launch of Operation “Eastern Sentry” on September 12, aimed at bolstering defensive capabilities in the region. According to a statement on NATO’s official website, countries such as Spain, the United Kingdom, Italy, and Sweden will join the operation.