Five drones tracked crossing Moldovan airspace ahead of independence parade

Moldova's National Army said it tracked five unauthorized drone flights through national airspace in the early hours of August 27, 2026, several hours ahead of a military parade in Chișinău marking 35 years of independence.

The crossings all occurred along the southeastern border in the Stefan Voda district, according to the Air Operations Service. That area regularly sees drone traffic linked to the Odesa region of Ukraine, and the service tied the timing to Russian air attacks on Ukraine overnight.

The first drone crossed near Palanca just before 4 a.m. local time and exited within a minute. A second appeared near Caplani minutes later. A third flew a longer path inland, passing over several villages including Crocmaz. A fourth briefly entered Moldovan airspace before turning back toward Ukraine. A fifth crossed later, around 5:50 a.m., and exited shortly after 6 a.m.

Two of the five were not tracked leaving Moldovan airspace. Authorities said one vanished from monitoring near Carahasani and another near Pervomaisc, an area in the Transnistrian sector where Chișinău lacks ground access to investigate.

No wreckage was reported this time. Officials did not mention any airspace closures or flight diversions, unlike a similar incursion in November 2025 that prompted an emergency notice and rerouted two inbound flights to Romania.

One of the tracked paths passed over Crocmaz, the site of a drone strike less than three weeks earlier, on August 9, 2026. Police said a device hit a tree and exploded above ground on that occasion, breaking windows and sparking a small fire.