Lithuania draws conclusions from armed drone's 80-kilometer flight over its territory
Lithuania's president said a Russian-made drone armed with a warhead that entered from Belarus on September 15 likely strayed off course while heading toward Ukraine and was not a deliberate act against Lithuania. The drone, shot down by a NATO fighter jet, flew at least 80 kilometers over Lithuanian territory before crashing.
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda said following a September 16 National Defence Council meeting that a Russian-made "Gerbera" drone carrying a warhead, which entered Lithuanian airspace from Belarus on the night of September 15, likely had been heading toward Ukraine but strayed off course. He stressed this was not a deliberate act against Lithuania.
Warhead neutralized by military engineers
The military confirmed the drone was fitted with a warhead, which was neutralized by military engineers while collecting the wreckage. Analysis of the drone's electronic components is now underway to determine its origin and the exact circumstances of the flight.
Shot down with an Eurofighter Typhoon missile
The drone was destroyed by a missile fired from a NATO fighter jet, an Italian Eurofighter Typhoon 2000. Wreckage fell on a cultivated field in the Kaišiadorys district, a few kilometers from the Kruonis pumped-storage power plant. Officials currently have no evidence indicating the energy facility was the drone's target.
Three takeaways from the flight path
The military said the drone was detected and its trajectory tracked while it was still over Belarus, before it entered Lithuanian airspace, allowing NATO fighters to take off from Šiauliai air base in time. Over Lithuanian territory, the drone flew at least 80 kilometers, heading southwest across the Vilnius and Trakai districts and the Elektrėnai municipality before being shot down near the village of Pratkūnai in the Kaišiadorys district. Analysis of this flight path allows for several conclusions about the incident and Lithuania's airspace defense capabilities.
