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Poland, NATO scramble jets amid drone strike in Ukraine, airport closed
The alert that lasted two hours began after multiple Russian drones crossed into Poland on Wednesday, prompting NATO to send fighter jets to shoot them
Polish and allied aircraft were deployed in a “preventative” operation in Poland’s airspace on Saturday ,seeing the threat of a drone strike in neighbouring areas of Ukraine, and the airport in the eastern Polish city of Lublin was closed.
The alert that lasted two hours in Poland began after multiple Russian drones crossed into Poland on Wednesday, prompting NATO to send fighter jets to shoot them down, Associated Press reported. This incident also marked an underlying concern about the expansion of Russia’s more than three-year war in Ukraine.
The Polish military’s operational command took to X on Saturday to inform that the ground-based air defence reconnaissance systems were on high alert. It clarified that “these actions are preventative in nature,” and were aimed at securing Poland’s airspace and protecting its citizens. Poland also cited the drone strikes in the region of Ukraine bordering Poland, but did not mention further details of the strikes.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk also posted that the ‘preventative air operations’ had begun in Polish airspace due to the threat posed by Russian drones operating over nearby areas of Ukraine.
The alert in Poland also prompted the closure of Lubin Airport. The Polish Air Navigation Services Agency said that Lubin Airport was closed to air traffic “due to military aviation activities," and the government security centre warned of a threat of air attack for several border counties in the region.
Earlier this week, Poland witnessed airspace violations from Russian drones. It activated the air defence system and shot down the drones with the help of its NATO allies,for the first time since the start of Russia Russia-Ukraine war.
Later on Saturday, the Poland military’s operational command noted that the operations had been completed and the ground-based defence and reconnaissance systems had returned to normal.
Russia claimed that it didn't target Poland in attacks earlier this week, while Moscow's ally, Belarus, said that the drones went astray because they were jammed. But European leaders have expressed certainty that the incursions were a deliberate provocation by Russia.
Poland has been on high alert in recent months, and its aircraft have been scrambled repeatedly to patrol the country's airspace in connection with Russian airstrikes in Ukraine, but those strikes have usually occurred overnight or in the early morning.
In a separate news, Romania deployed two F-16 jets on Saturday afternoon to intercept a drone that briefly entered its airspace. The defence ministry said that the drones did not fly over inhabited areas and did not represent an imminent danger to the citizens. It further said that specialists will look for potential debris.
(With inputs from Associated Press)
