Spanish jets scrambled after air targets detected near Snake Island
Romania issued a local alert in Tulcea county after radar detected air targets near Snake Island over the Black Sea on Sunday.
Spanish air force jets were scrambled after Romania's radar system detected an air target near Snake Island, in Ukrainian airspace over the Black Sea, on Sunday afternoon, Romania's defence ministry said.
Two Spanish F-18 fighters, on NATO air-policing duty, took off from the Mihail Kogălniceanu air base after the ministry's radar detected a target about 30km east of Snake Island, the ministry said. Romania's national military command centre asked the emergency inspectorate to alert residents of eastern Tulcea county, and a RO-Alert message was sent to residents' phones at 14:02 local time.
The target disappeared from radar east of the town of Sulina, Romanian broadcaster Știrile ProTV reported. A second target was then detected about 55km west of Snake Island, prompting two Spanish NH-90 helicopters to take off from the same air base to continue monitoring the airspace.
The air alert ended at 15:26, the defence ministry said. The RO-Alert was sent only to the eastern part of Tulcea county, and no emergency calls were logged with the Tulcea emergency service, ISU Delta, according to the report.
The ministry said it would provide further details as they became available, and that the situation in the area was being tracked closely by Romanian and allied forces stationed at the Mihail Kogălniceanu base. Spanish aircraft have been deployed to the base as part of NATO's rotating air-policing mission over the Black Sea region.
Follow this story
An email when there is a real update (a new toll, a cause, an arrest). Nothing else; stop with one click.
Free: one story at a time. Members follow as many stories as they like.
What we know
- 2+ outlets · Știripesurse, Știrile ProTV +4 Romania's defence ministry said radar detected an air target near Snake Island on Sunday afternoon, prompting a RO-Alert for eastern Tulcea county.
- 2+ outlets · HotNews, Digi24 +2 Two Spanish F-18 jets, on NATO air-policing duty, took off from the Mihail Kogălniceanu air base; a second target later prompted two Spanish NH-90 helicopters to take off too.
- 1 outlet · HotNews The first target disappeared from radar east of Sulina; the alert ended at 15:26 local time.
- 1 outlet · Digi24 No emergency calls were logged with Tulcea's emergency service during the alert, according to the report.
How each fact is established: Verified checked by an ECTV editorOfficial stated by an official body2+ outlets reported independently by two or more news organisations1 outlet reported by a single news organisation so farUnconfirmed claimed or reportedHow we label facts
Claims in this story
Claims tracker →- UnverifiedRomania's defence ministry· 8 Nov 2026
Romania's defence ministry said Spanish jets were scrambled after its radar system detected an air target near Snake Island over the Black Sea.
Why it matters for Europe
Snake Island, at the mouth of the Danube, sits close to shipping routes used for Ukrainian grain exports through the Black Sea, and repeated air alerts in the area reflect how often Romanian and allied aircraft are scrambled to track activity near Ukraine's maritime border. NATO allies including Spain maintain air-policing patrols from Romanian bases to monitor the region, and such scrambles have become a regular feature of life in Tulcea county as Russia's war in neighbouring Ukraine continues. Local authorities in the area have grown used to responding quickly to these alerts, coordinating between the military, emergency services and the public to limit disruption while the airspace is checked. Sunday's episode passed without any reported threat to people on the ground.
Sources
Reported by 7 reports from 7 independent outlets in 1 countries.
- Știripesurse: MApN este în alertă: două aeronave ridicate de la sol / Mesaj Ro-Alert primit de unii români
- Știrile ProTV: Două ținte aeriene detectate în apropierea Insulei Șerpilor. A fost emis mesaj RO-Alert în Tulcea
- Observator News: Două ţinte aeriene, detectate în zona Insulei Şerpilor. A fost emis RO-Alert pentru estul judeţului Tulcea
- HotNews: Drone detectate lângă Insula Șerpilor. Au fost mobilizate aeronave şi elicoptere ale Forţelor armate spaniole. Mesaj Ro-Alert pentru locuitorii din Tulcea
- Antena 3 CNN: Alertă în Tulcea: Ținte aeriene detectate în zona Insulei Șerpilor, deasupra Mării Negre. NATO a ridicat avioane F-18 și elicoptere
Source balance
PremiumSee how the 7 outlets behind this story spread from left to right, and which are official or OSINT sources.
Intelligence file
PremiumSee how we verified this story
Confidence and impact scores, 2 more sources, the full situation report and the event timeline.
Questions and answers
- What happened near Snake Island?
- Romania's defence ministry said radar detected air targets nearby, prompting Spanish NATO jets and helicopters to scramble from a Romanian air base.
- Were there any casualties or damage?
- No casualties or damage were reported.
- How long did the alert last?
- The RO-Alert and air alert in eastern Tulcea county ended at 15:26 local time, about ninety minutes after it began.
This article was written with AI assistance from 7 verified reports and checked under the ECTV editorial policy. Spotted an error? Request a correction.