Drone entered Moldova. Airspace temporarily closed

An unauthorized drone entered the airspace of the Republic of Moldova on Saturday, September 12. It was detected in the north of the country, near the villages of Vasilcău and Băxani in Soroca district, and later in the area of Cuconeștii Noi village in Edineț district.

The National Army's Air Operations Service detected the object at 3:26 p.m., after it entered the country's airspace from Ukraine. At the same time, a Border Police patrol spotted an unmanned aircraft.

According to the Ministry of Defense, the drone flew through the airspace near Vasilcău village in Soroca district, after which it disappeared from radar near Băxani village in the same district.

At 4:03 p.m., the aircraft reappeared near Cuconeștii Noi village in Edineț district.

To ensure the safety of civil flights, the authorities decided to temporarily close the airspace in the Northern and Central zones.

The Central zone was reopened at 4:20 p.m., while the Northern zone was reopened at 4:30 p.m.

The Civil Aviation Authority (AAC) announced that, due to the airspace closure, the Sharm el-Sheikh–Chișinău flight was diverted to George Enescu International Airport in Bacău. At the same time, the Chișinău–Bucharest, Chișinău–Istanbul, and Chișinău–Alicante flights were temporarily held on the ground.

After the airspace was reopened, flight operations resumed. As a result of the temporary restrictions, some flights may be delayed.

The AAC recommends that passengers check their flight status on the online board available at http://www.airport.md.

Defense Minister Anatolie Nosatîi recently said that since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, approximately 70 incidents involving objects or aircraft associated with the conflict have been recorded in the Republic of Moldova.


“The Russian Federation continues to represent the main threat to the country's military security, and these incidents demonstrate this,” the minister said.