On the afternoon of Thursday, October 17, early warning radars in Romania detected and identified a possible Russian unmanned aircraft. fly over the Black Sea destined for Romanian territory, it was envisaged that it would be a drone used as an intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) platform.
Considering the direction of approach of the drone towards NATO airspace, the Torrejón Combined Air Operations Center (CAOC-TJ) gave the order to hurry (in rapid reaction alert) to the Spanish F-18s of the “Paznic” Detachment to establish a patrol on NATO territory. shores of the Black Sea.
Subsequently, with the possible entry of the drone into Romanian airspace, the planes were directed to the area where the drone was located for search and surveillance purposes. After completing their mission, the F-18s landed at Mikhail Kogalniceanu Air Base after being relieved by F-16s of the Romanian Air Force.
In addition to combat aircraft, the French army’s MAMBA anti-aircraft artillery battery and North American maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) took part in the search, as well as helicopters based at Mikhail Kogalniceanu.
This mission is a clear example of Spain’s unequivocal commitment to the allied countries, as well as the excellent integration of the respective air assets in order to exercise joint protection of the airspace of the eastern flank of the NATO.
