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Nato Jets Down Drone That Entered Lithuanian Airspace
Confirmed
In Short: Nato fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Lithuania's airspace overnight, the Lithuanian president said.
Nato fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Lithuania's airspace overnight, the Lithuanian president, Gitanas Nausėda, announced on Tuesday morning. The drone likely entered southern Lithuania from neighboring Belarus shortly after midnight on Tuesday, according to reports. Lithuania's armed forces and Italian pilots serving in the Nato Air Defence Mission responded swiftly to the incursion, destroying the drone over the country.
The Lithuanian national crisis management centre stated that the origins of the drone are still unknown. Drone alerts were issued across the capital Vilnius and surrounding regions earlier on Tuesday, with residents advised to seek shelter and wait for the all-clear. Lithuania's leaders took shelter during the air alert, which was triggered by the potential drone threat.
The incident is part of a growing trend of military drone incursions into the airspace of the Baltic states since the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Poland also reported similar incidents on Monday night, with the country's military stating that the actions were 'preventive' and aimed at securing its airspace. Lithuania's Ministry of Defence noted that the shootdown was a 'swift and responsible response' to the drone incursion.
The Lithuanian Armed Forces detected the object flying toward Lithuania around midnight and destroyed it at 00:20 local time using missile weaponry. The crash site was near the Kruonis Pumped Storage Hydroelectric Plant, though there was no indication that the strategic facility was the drone's target. The Lithuanian Air Force commander, Colonel Antanas Matutis, said that a confirmed drone would have led to a red-level warning, while the absence of a threat would have allowed the alert to be lifted.
The shootdown came two days after NATO fighter jets launched from Šiauliai Air Base identified a flock of birds as the object behind a yellow air alert that suspended traffic at Vilnius Airport for 38 minutes on September 13, 2026. According to the National Crisis Management Centre (NKVC), radar returns from birds can initially resemble those produced by drones, prompting authorities to order an additional check. NATO fighters were launched from Šiauliai to identify the contact visually.
What's confirmed
- Nato fighter pilots have shot down a drone that entered Lithuania's airspace overnight, the Lithuanian president said.
- The drone was downed near the village of Pratkūnai in the Kaišiadorys district, about 60 miles (100 kilometers) west of the country's capital, Vilnius, and near the Kaunas Reservoir, Lithuania’s National Crisis Management Center said Tuesday.
- Lithuania’s military said that the incident marked the first time that a drone had been shot down in the country’s airspace.
- Antanas Matutis, commander of the Lithuanian air force, said that the wreckage had been found, and the drone “likely” was carrying explosives.
What's still developing
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- Poland also announced there had been "aviation operations" in its airspace on Monday night "due to the activity of Russian Federation's jet-powered unmanned aerial vehicles conducting strikes on Ukrainian territory".
- These actions are of a "preventive nature" and are aimed at "securing airspace and its protection, especially in areas adjacent to threatened regions", it added.
- Possible explanations included a drone that had strayed from its intended route, a smuggling flight or hostile reconnaissance, he said.
- Military Police and Lithuanian police secured the area while specialists examined the debris.
- Vilmantas Vitkauskas, head of the crisis center, told Lithuanian public broadcaster LRT that the drone most likely entered from Belarus.
- It remained in Lithuanian airspace for about 30 minutes and flew along the outskirts of populated areas before being intercepted, he said.
- A “massive” Ukrainian drone attack sparked several fires in the Russian city of Taganrog, regional Gov. Yuri Slyusar said.