French Rafale shoots down drone over Latvia during Baltic Air Policing mission
A French Rafale fighter, part of NATO's Baltic Air Policing mission, intercepted and destroyed an unidentified drone that entered Latvian airspace, marking the first recorded video of such an engagement in the region.
A French Rafale jet deployed from Šiauliai Air Base in Lithuania intercepted an unidentified drone that entered Latvian airspace on Saturday, shooting it down over an uninhabited area, the French Air and Space Force said. The incident occurred after a yellow alert was issued for several districts in eastern Latvia at 09:20 local time and was later upgraded to orange as the drone was confirmed to be in the airspace. The Latvian military warned residents to stay indoors and avoid the object.
"This is a demonstration of the French Armed Forces’ commitment to contributing to the security of Europe’s eastern flank," the French service posted on X.
The Rafale, equipped with MICA beyond-visual-range missiles, launched an air-to-air missile that detonated seconds later, as shown in two videos circulating on social media. The engagement is the first time a NATO fighter-aircraft drone shoot-down in the Baltic region has been captured on camera.
Latvia’s armed forces confirmed that the drone entered from Russia and that NATO fighters were over the Rēzekne district when the shoot-down occurred at 10:05 a.m. The area of impact, Berzgale parish, lies less than 20 miles from the Russian border.
The incident adds to a series of recent drone incursions in NATO airspace, including a Romanian F-16 downing a Ukrainian drone over Estonia in May and multiple Russian drone violations of Polish airspace last September. NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission, which rotates allied fighter detachments to protect the airspace of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, has increasingly faced drone threats since the war in Ukraine began.
A NATO spokesperson said that electronic jamming is common in the region and can pose safety risks, but the alliance did not confirm whether the drone was affected by such interference. The French Ministry of Defense is developing a lower-cost counter-drone system for the Rafale, with trials of a pod carrying 68 mm laser-guided rockets underway.
