September 2025 Russian drone incursion into Poland

September 2025 Russian drone incursion into Poland

Part of the Spillover of the Russian invasion of Ukraine
Visualisation of the drone incursion into Poland (drone flight paths in yellow)
Date	9–10 September 2025
Time	23:30–06:45 (CEST)
Duration	7 hours 15 minutes
Location	Eastern, central and northern Poland
Type	Airspace intrusion by military drones
Motive	Unknown
Outcome	≥ 8 [1] of the estimated 23 [2] drones shot down by allied forces, One house damaged, Poland invokes Article 4 of the North Atlantic Treaty Poland restricts the airspace along its eastern border [3]
Countries involved	Poland Russia NATO Italy [a] Germany [b] Netherlands [c] Belgium [d]

On 9 September 2025, at approximately 11:30 p.m. CEST, ^[4] at least 19, ^[5] and likely 23 kamikaze drones entered Polish airspace after being launched from the Russian Federation. Polish Air Force and NATO Quick Reaction Alert aircraft scrambled, ^{[6] [4] [7]} and at least eight ^[8] drones were shot down. The airspace over Warsaw International Airport, Warsaw Modlin Airport, Rzeszów–Jasionka Airport, and Lublin Airport was closed while the Russian drone fleet was in Polish airspace. ^{[9] [10]} Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that the drones which "posed a direct threat" had been shot down. ^[5] The Polish government has requested Article 4 consultations with NATO, ^[5] and Deputy Prime Minister Radosław Sikorski said on Bluesky of the affair that "We are dealing with an unprecedented case of an attack not only on the territory of Poland but also on the territory of NATO and the EU". ^[11] Out of those drones that were shot down, most were downed by the Dutch Air Force.

Incursion and defence

According to Rzeczpospolita , the number of Russian drones was around 23; ^[2] they entered Poland via Belarus. ^[12]

Several NATO countries also took part in the operation to shoot down the drones, aiding the Polish F-16s. The deployment included Dutch F-35 Lightning II, Italian airborne early warning and control aircraft, and a Belgian Airbus A330 MRTT aerial tanker. ^[13] German MIM-104 Patriot surface-to-air systems in Poland were placed on high alert ^{[14] [15]} and tracked the path of the drone wave. ^[16] Out of those drones that were shot down, most were downed by Dutch F-35 aircraft. ^{[2] [17]} The last shootdown occurred at 06:45 CEST. ^[18] These actions mark the first time Poland, or any NATO country, has engaged and downed Russian assets in its airspace since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. ^{[19] [20]}

Locations of drones and debris included several near the Polish eastern border (Bychawka Trzecia, Cześniki, Czosnówka, Krzywowierzba-Kolonia, Wielki Łan, Wohyń, Wyhalew, Wyryki-Wola, Zabłocie-Kolonia, and near Rabiany), several in south-eastern Poland (Czyżów, Smyków, Sobótka), as well as a field near Mniszków and the town of Nowe Miasto nad Pilicą in central Poland, ^[18] and Oleśno in northern Poland. ^{[21] [22] [23]} One of the drones struck a residential building in Wyryki-Wola, Lublin Voivodeship, destroying the roof of the building. ^[24]

Cześniki

Czosnówka

Krzywowierzba-Kolonia

Wielki Łan

Wohyń

Wyhalew

Wyryki-Wola

Mniszków

Oleśno

Kaliningrad (Russia)

Ukraine

Bychawka Trzecia

Zabłocie-Kolonia

Rabiany

Nowe Miasto nad Pilicą

Czyżów

Smyków

Sobótka

class=notpageimage|

Locations of drone hits and falls, and associated debris

Analysis

A Gerbera-type drone such as those used in the Russian incursion into Polish air space

At least some of the drones used in the incursion were of the Gerbera type. ^[25] According to two analysts quoted by BBC Verify (Justin Bronk of RUSI and Justin Crump of the risk and intelligence company Sibylline), "...the scale of the incursion suggests it was almost certainly a deliberate act on Russia's part." ^[25]

Following the 9–10 September incursion, Rzeczpospolita stated that modernisation of the "SkyCTRL" anti-drone system in Poland had been delayed for eighteen months by the Polish Ministry of Defence (MON) due to lack of funds, and that the system was effectively inactive. Rzeczpospolita stated its expectation that MON would find the needed funding, but that several months would be needed for implementation. ^[2]

Reactions

• Poland – Prime minister Donald Tusk requested the invocation of Article 4 of the North Atlantic Treaty. ^[26]
• Russia – Andrey Ordash, Russia's chargé d'affaires in Poland, stated that the accusations of the incursion were groundless. ^[27]
• Belarus – Intercepted purportedly stray drones. ^[28] Pavel Muraveiko, the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Belarus, said that Belarus had informed Poland and Lithuania ahead of time about drones being out of control due to electronic jamming. He added that "The Republic of Belarus will continue to fulfill its obligations within the framework of the exchange of information on the air situation with the Republic of Poland and the Baltic countries". ^[29]
• Belgium – Defense minister Theo Francken said "Russian violations of NATO airspace are unacceptable". He also expressed solidarity and support with Poland. ^[30]
• Bulgaria – President Rumen Radev wrote on X, stating that "Violating the airspace of sovereign Poland leads to a dangerous escalation of tension between Russia and NATO". ^[31] Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov said “Our position is clear and aligned with that of our allies. We express the Alliance’s determination to take all necessary measures foreseen by the treaty”. ^[32]
• European Union – President Ursula von der Leyen stated that the EU stood "in full solidarity with Poland". ^[28] The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Security Policy/Vice-President Kaja Kallas had also released a statement in support of Poland and condemnation of Russia. ^{[33] [34]}
• Finland – Prime minister Petteri Orpo condemned Russia's actions and expressed "full support to Poland." ^[35]
• France – President Emmanuel Macron called the incursion "unacceptable". ^[28]
• Germany – Defense minister Boris Pistorius said "[t]hese drones were quite obviously deliberately directed on this course—in order to fly into Ukraine". He also expressed support for Poland's requested Article 4 consultations. ^[36]
• Hungary – Prime minister Viktor Orbán expressed full solidarity with Poland, calling the violation of Poland's territorial integrity "unacceptable". ^[37]
  • Orbán's statement was rebuffed by Poland's Sikorski, who called Hungary to condemn Russian aggression, approve stronger sanctions against Russia and unblock the disbursement of EU funds for defence and the start of Ukraine's EU accession negotiations. Orbán's message came at a moment of diplomatic crisis between Hungary and Poland, being thus regarded as exceptional by many as Euronews described. ^[37]
• Italy – Prime minister Giorgia Meloni expressed full solidarity with Poland for the "serious and unacceptable violation" of its airspace. ^[38]
• Moldova – President Maia Sandu condemned the attack on Ukraine and the violation of Polish airspace, noting that Moldova had suffered similar incidents. She called for greater support for Ukraine and investments in stronger air defense in Europe. ^[39]
• Netherlands supplied Patriot, NASAMS systems, and counter-drone equipment, as well as 300 soldiers. ^{[40] [41]}
• Romania – President Nicușor Dan and defense minister Ionuț Moșteanu both declared that Romania stands in full solidarity with Poland. President Dan further added that "Russia must be stopped and pressured to come to the negotiation table". ^[42] Romania furthermore scrambled fighter jets to monitor a group of Russian drones near its border, though no drones entered Romanian airspace. ^[43]
• Sweden – Sweden urgently ^{[44] [45] [46]} sent more Gripen fighters and air defense systems to Poland. ^[47]
• Ukraine – President Volodymyr Zelenskyy released a statement in which he stated that the incursion could not be called an "accident". ^[48]
• United Kingdom - Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the drone incursion as "deeply concerning" and as "an extremely reckless move" by Russia. The UK Defence Secretary, John Healey, described it as "a new level of hostility against Europe." He also stated that he had asked the UK armed forces to "look at options to bolster Nato's air defence over Poland," adding, "We see what Putin is doing. Yet again he is testing us. Yet again we will stand firm." ^{[49] [50]}
• United States – Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker said "We stand by our [NATO] Allies in the face of these airspace violations and will defend every inch of NATO territory." ^[51] President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social, "What's with Russia violating Poland's airspace with drones? Here we go!". ^[52]

See also

• 2022 missile explosion in Poland
• 2024 Baltic Sea submarine cable disruptions
• 2024 incendiary incidents in Europe
• Russian hybrid warfare
• Russian sabotage operations in Europe
• Russian shadow fleet
• Violations of non-combatant airspaces during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
• Zapad 2025, scheduled Russian-Belarusian joint strategic military exercise, to be conducted in Belarus on 12–16 September 2025

Notes

1. Italy provided early warning aicraft.
2. Germany utilised Patriot systems.
3. The Netherlands contributed F-35 fighters, originally stationed in Estonia, and shot down the majority of the drones.
4. Belgium refuelled F-35 aircraft in flight with kerosene.

References

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