French Jet Downs Drone Near Latvian Border
A French fighter jet operating under NATO command shot down a drone that entered Latvia’s airspace from Russia on Monday morning. Officials said the incident occurred near Berzgale, about 30 kilometers from the border, and caused no injuries or damage. The event follows similar stray-drone reports in neighboring countries.
theaviationist.comA French fighter jet shot down a drone that entered Latvia’s airspace from Russia on Monday morning near the village of Berzgale, about 30 kilometers from the border. Latvian authorities said the drone entered the country as a result of Russian electromagnetic warfare.
Officials had warned residents in eastern regions to shelter indoors before the incident. No one was hurt and no property was damaged, the defense minister told reporters. Military vehicles searched rural roads around Berzgale for debris later that day.
The final decision to shoot down the drone was made by NATO command.
The French jet was part of the NATO Baltic Air Police mission that patrols the skies of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. Romanian and Portuguese jets are also currently assigned to the mission.
Similar incidents have occurred in neighboring countries.
Fragments of a Ukrainian drone were found in Moldova on Monday after it entered from Ukraine. Officials there also attributed the stray flight to Russian electronic warfare. Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said the Latvia and Moldova cases confirm that Russia’s actions against Ukraine pose a threat beyond Ukraine’s borders.
