The incident occurred as Russia launched waves of drones and missiles across Ukraine, primarily targeting central and western regions and inflicting civilian casualties.
“Last night the Polish airspace was violated by a huge number of Russian drones,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on X, adding that those “that posed a direct threat were shot down.”
Polish authorities temporarily closed Warsaw’s main Chopin Airport and placed the country’s air defenses on high alert overnight after what they described as “an unprecedented violation of Polish airspace by drone-type objects.”
The Polish Armed Forces’ Operational Command announced it had activated all necessary procedures to protect national airspace and scrambled both Polish and NATO aircraft in response to the threat.
Earlier, Tusk confirmed that a military operation related to multiple violations of Polish airspace was underway without initially naming the drones’ origin. The prime minister also added that he has informed the NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte about the situation.
Russian drones and missiles have repeatedly violated the airspace of Poland and other NATO members during strikes on Ukraine, but until Sept. 10, there had never been a confirmed case of local defenses shooting one down.
Polish fighter jets have been scrambled before in response to the war, but previous deployments primarily involved monitoring or escorting Russian drones that briefly entered Polish airspace en route to targets in Ukraine — not engaging or shooting them down.
The Polish military later announced that the Polish and allied aircraft, including Dutch F-35 warplanes, concluded their operation, and air defenses and radar systems resumed normal activity. The search for impact sites and wreckage is ongoing.
The European Union’s Defence Commissioner Andrius Kubilius has called for the EU to develop a “drone wall” along its eastern flank.
“Once again Russia tests frontier states, EU & NATO,” Kubilius wrote in a post on social media.
“We shall work together with Member States, frontier countries and Ukraine. Russia will be stopped,” he added.
“Russia’s war is escalating, not ending. We must raise the cost on Moscow, strengthen support for Ukraine, and invest in Europe’s defence. The EU plays a major role and we will support initiatives like the Eastern Border Shield defence line,” the EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, wrote on social media.
