On the night of 15-16 August 2026, a Spanish Air and Space Force F-18 fighter jet patrolling Romanian airspace shot down an unidentified drone that violated Romania's airspace coming from Moldova, approximately 24 km north of Galați. The aircraft operating from the 57th Air Base at Mihail Kogălniceanu established radar contact and was authorized to engage. The drone was shot down at 05:01 over an uninhabited area between Băleni and Cudalbi in Galați County. The all-clear was given at 05:20. Romania's acting National Defence Minister Radu Miruță praised the military for the successful mission, highlighting allied vigilance and solidarity. This marked the fourth drone shootdown over Romanian airspace, following earlier incidents in late July 2026, involving Shahed-type drones and other Russian drones that had entered or crashed in Romanian territory near the Danube during Russian strikes on Ukrainian ports.

On the night of 15-16 August 2026, a Spanish Air and Space Force F-18 fighter jet patrolling Romanian airspace shot down an unidentified drone that violated Romania's airspace coming from Moldova, approximately 24 km north of Galați. The aircraft operating from the 57th Air Base at Mihail Kogălniceanu established radar contact and was authorized to engage. The drone was shot down at 05:01 over an uninhabited area between Băleni and Cudalbi in Galați County. The all-clear was given at 05:20. Romania's acting National Defence Minister Radu Miruță praised the military for the successful mission, highlighting allied vigilance and solidarity. This marked the fourth drone shootdown over Romanian airspace, following earlier incidents in late July 2026, involving Shahed-type drones and other Russian drones that had entered or crashed in Romanian territory near the Danube during Russian strikes on Ukrainian ports.