Poland Confirms Downing Drones
Photo: Ill. Purposes Senior Master Sgt. Edward Snyder, U.S. Air National Guard (12 June 2015). F-16 at Łask Air Base, Poland, Operation Atlantic Resolve. DVIDS . Public domain (U.S. Gov).
Polish authorities temporarily shut down Warsaw’s Chopin Airport and placed air defenses on high alert overnight on Sept. 10, Orda.kz reports, citing The Kyiv Independent.
This follows after what they called “an unprecedented violation of Polish airspace by drone-type objects.”
The incident happened as Russian drones crossed into Poland during a large-scale overnight strike on Ukraine.
The Polish Armed Forces’ Operational Command said all procedures to protect national airspace were activated, with both Polish and NATO aircraft scrambled in response.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk confirmed that an operation is underway following multiple airspace violations.
“The military has used weapons against the targets,” he said, without explicitly identifying the drones’ origin.
Tusk added that NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has been informed.
The Polish military later confirmed the aerial objects were shot down, marking what is believed to be the first time since 2022 that a NATO member has directly engaged Russian assets in its own airspace.
Previous incidents involved fighter jets shadowing or escorting drones, not destroying them.
“Ground-based air defense and radar reconnaissance systems have reached a state of high alert,” the Polish Air Force said, noting that searches are underway for potential crash sites.
President Karol Nawrocki stated he has been in constant contact with Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz and will chair a National Security Bureau briefing with Tusk.
“Our homeland’s security is the highest priority and requires close cooperation,” Nawrocki said on X.
Kosiniak-Kamysz added that the military “tracked several objects that violated the airspace” and destroyed those that posed a threat. Authorities urged residents of Podlaskie, Mazowieckie, and Lublin regions to remain indoors.
The FAA confirmed that Chopin Airport and three others were temporarily unavailable due to “unplanned military activity related to ensuring state security.”
Among them was Rzeszów–Jasionka Airport, a vital hub for passenger travel and arms shipments to Ukraine, though Polish officials have not publicly confirmed the closures.
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