The National Armed Forces revealed details of the first-ever destruction of a foreign drone that invaded the airspace of Latvia. Less than an hour passed from the first sensor signal to the strike by NATO fighters.
On Monday morning, NATO forces destroyed a drone that had entered Latvian airspace for the first time. The National Armed Forces (NAF) explained how events unfolded from the moment the target was detected to its elimination.
According to Brigadier General Kaspars Zdanovskis, Deputy Chief of the NAF Joint Staff for Logistics, the first data about the possible movement of the drone towards Latvia was received in the morning from the sensor system.
At 9:20 AM, the NAF announced a yellow alert level for a potential air threat in the Ludza, Balvi, and Alūksne regions. At the same time, NATO fighter jets were scrambled to monitor the situation.
The military observed that the object continued to move over the territory of the country. At 9:40 AM, an orange alert level was declared in the Ludza and Rezekne regions.
According to the NAF, the drone entered Latvian airspace after being affected by Russian electronic warfare systems, which may have altered its course.
After visual confirmation of the target, NATO command decided to destroy it. At 10:05 AM, French fighter jets participating in the NATO mission to protect the airspace of the Baltic states shot down the drone.
The drone was destroyed in the Berzgale parish of the Rezekne region — in a sparsely populated area between Rezekne and Karsava.
What is important to know: only 45 minutes passed from the first warning to the destruction of the object. This demonstrates how quickly the interaction between the NAF and NATO forces is organized in the event of such threats.
Preliminary data indicates that no residents were harmed, and there was no damage to civilian infrastructure.
Military personnel are currently examining the crash site. Employees of the State Police are also involved in the work. Specialists are to determine the origin of the drone, its type, and to ensure that there are no consequences on the ground.
Defense Minister Raivis Melniks stated that it is currently impossible to accurately determine either the country of origin of the device or its model. He also declined to specify what type of weapon was used to destroy the drone.
At the same time, the minister noted that Latvia needs to develop counter-drone systems that will allow for effective responses to such threats without excessive costs.
According to Zdanovskis, one of the factors contributing to the successful operation was the improvement of the surveillance system. Recently, the NAF has enhanced its data acquisition and analysis capabilities, which allowed for quicker target identification and decision-making.
The military does not rule out that similar incidents may occur in the future. In recent months, there have been multiple instances of drones appearing in eastern Latvia, presumably related to the war between Russia and Ukraine.
However, today's case was the first instance where a foreign drone that violated Latvian airspace was detected, identified, and destroyed by NATO forces.
Leave a comment