Romania Shows Destruction of Sea Drone by F-16 Cannon

Acting Romanian Defense Minister Radu Miruță has released a video showing the destruction of a sea drone in the Black Sea. A Romanian F-16 fighter opened fire on the target, using its onboard cannon.

The incident occurred on August 20 in Romania's exclusive economic zone, approximately 80 nautical miles east of Constanța, near the Neptun Deep gas infrastructure and the Neptun Alpha platform.

The drifting sea drone was spotted in the morning by a commercial vessel. According to Romanian authorities, the device was several hundred meters from the work area and was rigged with explosives.

After receiving the information, the Romanian Ministry of Defense set up a command center. The decision to neutralize the object was made after threat assessment and coordination with the country's leadership and NATO structures.

Two F-16s scrambled to destroy the drone

Two Romanian F-16 fighters were scrambled with authorization to use weapons. One of the aircraft attacked the sea drone with its onboard cannon. The footage released by Miruță shows the fighter's approach to the target and firing.

The minister explained the decision by the need to protect several hundred people working on the offshore platform, as well as critical energy infrastructure.

After the strike, a Coast Guard vessel with a team of Romanian Navy explosive ordnance disposal specialists was dispatched to the scene.

Later, Miruță clarified reports about an alleged second sea drone. According to him, it was not about a second target: the drone initially attacked by the F-16 was not completely destroyed, so the military needed an additional operation for its final neutralization.

Ukraine said the drone is not theirs

The Romanian side used a recently established direct communication channel with Ukraine to determine the origin of the device. According to the defense minister, Kyiv officially confirmed that the sea drone did not belong to Ukrainian forces.

At the same time, Romanian authorities have not publicly presented final results of the debris examination that would allow definitive identification of the specific drone's origin.

Romanian President Nicușor Dan after the incident thanked the military for prompt action and linked the event to growing security risks in the Black Sea.

Based on materials from: Radu Miruță, Romanian Ministry of National Defence