❌

Normal view

Fighter jets help destroy Russian drone boat near European offshore gas platform

21 August 2026 at 17:48

This week, Romania accused Russia of sending a drone boat loaded with explosives to a vital European natural gas platform in the Black Sea. A Romanian F-16 fighter jet used its cannons to disable the surface drone so that explosive ordnance experts could blow it up safely.

On August 20, the Romanian Coast Guard first spotted the maritime drone a few hundred meters away from the Neptun Deep project’s main drilling platform, where several hundred workers were busy with the platform’s ongoing installation, Defense Minister Radu MiruΘ›Δƒ said in a Facebook post. The offshore gas project would make Romania the largest gas producer in the European Union once it starts full production in 2027.

To protect the lives of the workers and the offshore gas infrastructure, the Romanian military scrambled two F-16 fighter jets to stop the drone with cannon fire, MiruΘ›Δƒ said. Army specialists later carried out a controlled detonation, as seen in a Facebook video shared by the defense minister.

Read full article

Comments

Β© Romanian Ministry of Defense

Ukrainian drones wipe out entire US tank brigade in live war game

13 August 2026 at 19:31

Ukrainian drone teams demolished a brigade of US Army tanks and armored vehicles during a live war game held this yearβ€”but the US soldiers were lucky enough to get β€œrespawn” attempts while learning from the experience.

The semiannual military exercise, called Combined Resolve, gave the US military a firsthand taste of how modern drone warfare has evolved on the battlefields of Ukraine. The Ukrainian drone operators participating in the exercise were easily able to spot and destroy US armored vehicles by mimicking the actions of dropping bombs from above or moving close enough to simulate a kamikaze strike, according to US officials and a participant who spoke with The Wall Street Journal.

US armored vehicles were being destroyed so quickly that they were β€œrespawned” and sent back into the simulated fray, a US official told The Wall Street Journal. The US troops who participated in the exerciseβ€”held in Germany from April 9 to May 10β€”were on rotational deployment from Fort Hood, Texas.

Read full article

Comments

Β© Sgt. Joseph Mcdonald | US Army

Russian drones found near vital European offshore gas site, get blown up

11 August 2026 at 22:20

Romanian army divers used explosives to destroy two Russian-made drones found floating in the Black Sea near Romania’s largest natural gas project, according to the NATO member country’s defense minister.

Defense Minister Radu MiruΘ›Δƒ posted a Facebook video supposedly showing one of the drones being blown up in the water by explosive ordnance disposal divers of the Romanian army on August 11, as reported by Reuters and other news outlets. The drones were first spotted in the water by a ship working in the vicinity of the Neptun Deepβ€”an offshore gas project under development in the Black Sea that will make Romania the largest gas producer in the European Union.

A Romanian Coast Guard ship that responded with army soldiers aboard found two drifting Gerbera-type drones of Russian design along with other debris. MiruΘ›Δƒ also disclosed that Romania had reached out to β€œUkrainian partners who confirmed that the systems do not belong to them.”

Read full article

Comments

Β© Romanian Ministry of Defense

Explosive drone found hovering near Ukrainian cargo aircraft at German airport

6 August 2026 at 23:01

German police disarmed a drone carrying explosives after it was discovered near Ukrainian cargo aircraft parked at Leipzig airportβ€”and authorities are looking into the possibility of a second drone after an approaching aircraft collided with something midair.

The drone, first spotted by an airport employee,Β was hovering close to the ground between two parked An-124 cargo aircraft owned by Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines shortly before midnight on August 4, according to The Guardian. It had apparently been modified to help avoid detection by the airport’s drone defense sensors, said Alexander Dobrindt, federal minister of the interior for Germany, during a press conference.

Dobrindt described the drone as carrying a fist-sized package of a substance believed to be the plastic explosive Semtex. Only a failed detonator prevented the drone from exploding near the Ukrainian cargo aircraft, he said.

Read full article

Comments

Β© Jens Schlueter/Getty Images

Explosive drone found hovering near Ukrainian cargo aircraft at German airport

6 August 2026 at 23:01

German police disarmed a drone carrying explosives after it was discovered near Ukrainian cargo aircraft parked at Leipzig airportβ€”and authorities are looking into the possibility of a second drone after an approaching aircraft collided with something midair.

The drone, first spotted by an airport employee,Β was hovering close to the ground between two parked An-124 cargo aircraft owned by Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines shortly before midnight on August 4, according to The Guardian. It had apparently been modified to help avoid detection by the airport’s drone defense sensors, said Alexander Dobrindt, federal minister of the interior for Germany, during a press conference.

Dobrindt described the drone as carrying a fist-sized package of a substance believed to be the plastic explosive Semtex. Only a failed detonator prevented the drone from exploding near the Ukrainian cargo aircraft, he said.

Read full article

Comments

Β© Jens Schlueter/Getty Images

Ukrainian drones deliver robots directly into battle by sea and air

22 July 2026 at 12:15

In the latest twist on battlefield innovations, Ukraine has used both flying drone carriers and drone boats to send ground robots armed with weapons or explosives into battle.

The drone-assisted deployments have enabled slower wheeled robots to bypass tough terrain and Russian defenses, and to carry out an unusual robotic amphibious assault on a contested position. Such tactics also showcase the Ukrainian military’s ongoing experimentation with using drones and robots to offset a Russian military advantage in manpower while also sparing Ukrainian soldiers from making dangerous assaults.

On July 19, a Russian military Telegram channel posted a video showing a Ukrainian hexacopter drone carrying a ground robot suspended below by a cable, according to the Ukrainian government-run news platform United24. The Russian Telegram channel described the Ukrainian heavy bomber drone as deploying a four-wheeled ARK-1 robot armed with explosive anti-tank mines on the ground where it continued toward Russian military positionsβ€”and apparently generated plenty of outraged comments from pro-Kremlin social media users.

Read full article

Comments

Β© Dmytro Smolienko/ Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images

❌