| Date | 24 Feb 2022 |
| Tracker | European Airspace Violations |
| Type | Interception |
| Location |
Bacău, Romania
46.57, 26.91 (approximate) |
On the opening day of the invasion a Ukrainian Air Force Su-27 suffered a technical fault and lost communication with its base, drifting into Romanian airspace. Two Romanian F-16s intercepted the fighter and escorted it to the 95th Air Base at Bacău. Once the fault was repaired the aircraft was returned on 1 March, flown out without its armament under escort by two MiG-21 LanceRs and handed over to Ukrainian aircraft at the border. It was the first airspace violation of the war, and an accidental one.
| Date | Type | Incident |
|---|---|---|
| 2 Mar 2022 | Incursion | Russian Su-24 and Su-27 fighters violate Swedish airspace east of Gotland |
| 10 Mar 2022 | Incursion | Tu-141 drone crashes in Zagreb after crossing three borders |
| 14 Mar 2022 | Incursion | Russian Orlan-10 drone crashes in Bistrița-Năsăud County |
| 29 Apr 2022 | Incursion | Russian An-30 survey aircraft violates Swedish airspace off Blekinge |
GlobalMilitary.net's 2026 inventory snapshot shows nine NATO members — Iceland, Luxembourg, the three Baltic states, Montenegro, Albania, North Macedonia and Slovenia — hold no fixed-wing fighters, attack aircraft or bombers and depend on Allied air policing.
GlobalMilitary.net's incident log counts 45 established violations of European airspace between January 1 and August 16, 2026, against 31 for the whole of 2025 - and almost all of the growth sits in incidents that ended with a shootdown or an explosion on the ground.
An Italian Eurofighter on NATO Baltic Air Policing duty destroyed an unidentified drone over eastern Latvia before dawn on 14 August, the second time the alliance's quick-reaction force has shot one down over the country this year.