Latvia Recovers Drone Wreckage 6 Days After Initial Search Halted
The National Armed Forces located debris in Alūksne district after an earlier two-day hunt found insufficient evidence to identify what had occurred.
By Aiko Petrov ·
Latvia's National Armed Forces said on Saturday, 24 October, that they recovered the wreckage of a drone that came down on Latvian soil. The debris was located in the Alūksne district.
Military officials said the unmanned aircraft most likely crossed into Latvian airspace on 18 October. The account was relayed by European Pravda, citing the armed forces.
The case first surfaced after reports of a loud noise that resembled an explosion. National Armed Forces personnel and State Police then began searching for a crash site. That operation was suspended after two days because the available information was insufficient to establish what had happened.
Authorities have opened an investigation into the circumstances of the event. An internal review is also underway to examine how the incident unfolded and the factors surrounding it. The military said no civilians were hurt and no civilian infrastructure was damaged. Officials reported no further identified threats.
The discovery follows a similar episode in Lithuania. On Sunday, 18 October, wreckage from a suspected drone that violated airspace was found in Juodžionys, in Lithuania's Pasvalys district. Lithuania said that drone entered its airspace from Poland. Lithuanian Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius said the aircraft carried explosives. Heorhii Tykhyi, spokesman for Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the Lithuanian incident was likely the result of Russian electronic warfare measures and added that Ukraine expressed regret over what happened.
Source: Ukrainska Pravda
