Turkey announces that it shot down an “out of control” drone over the Black Sea / Erdogan's warning
Shahed drone, widely used by Russia in the war in Ukraine Photo: Pictorial Press Ltd / Alamy / Alamy / Profimedia
Turkey shot down a drone “out of control” that was approaching its airspace over the Black Sea on Monday, the Ministry of Defense announced, according to AFP and Agerpres.
“To prevent any untoward consequences, the drone was shot down in a secure area, far from any inhabited area,” the Turkish ministry said, without specifying the exact origin of the drone.
According to Ankara, “an air trail (…) was detected and tracked as part of routine procedures” over the Black Sea and “it was determined that the air trail in question corresponded to an out-of-control drone.”
“To ensure the security of the airspace, our F-16 aircraft, placed under NATO command and under national command, were deployed on an interception mission,” the Turkish Ministry of Defense added.
The incident comes after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned on Saturday against turning the Black Sea into a “confrontation zone” between Russia and Ukraine following several strikes in recent weeks against ships.
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