Stray Russian drone hits Romanian apartment building

Stray Russian drone hits Romanian apartment building

Stray Russian drone hits Romanian apartment building

During the recent attack on Ukraine, a Russian Geran-2 drone struck an apartment building in Romania near the border.

On the night of May 28-29, 2026, a Russian drone crashed into an apartment building in Romania near the Ukrainian border, starting a fire and injuring two people. The drone appears to have gone astray during the recent Russian attack on Ukraine.

Among the targets was Izmail, home to Ukraine’s largest port near the Danube River and border. One of the drones arrived in Galati, located on the border of Romania, Ukraine and Moldavia.

Romania’s Defense Ministry said this was not the first time Russian drones had violated Romanian airspace, having already done so 28 times since the attacks on ports across the Danube began. However, this is the first time a Russian drone has struck a populated area and caused injuries.

The Ministry of Defense identified the drone as a Geran 2, a Russian-made replica of the Iranian Shahed 136. According to the statement, the entire warhead exploded upon impact with the roof of the building.

Two F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter jets and an IAR 330 SOCAT helicopter of the Romanian Air Force were also dispatched after the drone was detected. Romanian Brigadier General Gheorghe Maxim said the drone flew at low altitude in Romanian airspace for just four minutes.

Pilots were given permission to engage the drone, but the low altitude made it difficult for radar to detect the target. Additionally, the US Counter-UAS system Merops, which uses interceptor drones, was operating in Romania, but was deemed too risky for use in densely populated areas.

“The Ministry of Defense firmly condemns the irresponsible actions of the Russian Federation and emphasizes that this represents a new challenge to regional security and stability in the Black Sea region,” the ministry added in a statement. “These incidents demonstrate the Russian Federation’s lack of respect for international legal norms and threaten not only the safety of Romanian citizens, but also the collective security of NATO.”

NATO and the European Union also condemned the incident, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Russia had “crossed yet another line.” Likewise, a NATO spokesperson posted to

Lost drones of the Ukraine-Russia war

This is not the first time a drone used in the Ukraine war has gone off track, and this problem has been experienced by both sides. The cause is often due to malfunctions or the effects of electronic warfare.

Recently, on May 19, 2026, a Ukrainian drone entered Estonian airspace during an attack on Russia. A “large-scale electronic warfare situation, including Russian GPS spoofing and jamming,” was reported, which may have caused the drone to veer off course.

Romanian F-16s currently deployed in Lithuania as part of NATO’s Baltic air security mission were tasked with intercepting and shooting down drones. Ukraine later publicly apologized for the incident, calling it “unintentional” and saying the drone had been diverted toward the Baltic Sea region by electronic warfare.

This incident occurred last year when F-16s and F-35s intercepted and shot down a Russian drone that violated Polish airspace during a large-scale airstrike against Ukraine. The incident occurred on the night of September 9-10, 2025.

According to then-Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, “a huge number” of Russian drones crossed into Polish skies during the attack. He added that the drones that posed an immediate threat were neutralized by fighter jets and no casualties were reported.

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