Warsaw (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The Operational Command of the Armed Forces has stated that Poland is restricting traffic in the air over its eastern borders with Belarus and Ukraine, a day after several drones violated its airspace and tensions increased.
In the early hours of Wednesday, Poland shot down suspected Russian drones, again under North Atlantic Treaty Organisation member states’ partnership aircraft, something that had not been done to that point in the context of Ukrainian fighting with Russia, during the Russian fighting with Ukraine.
When do the restrictions start taking effect?
“At the request of the Operational Command of the Branches of the Armed Forces … air traffic restrictions will be introduced in the eastern part of Poland in the form of the restricted zone EP R129”,
The Polish Air Navigation Agency said in a statement published late on Wednesday.
Restrictions took effect at 2200 GMT on Wednesday and will remain in place until December 9, according to the statement.
Between sunrise and sunset, flights in the restricted zone are prohibited, except for manned aircraft flying with a flight plan, proper transponders, and two-way radio communication with air authorities, according to the agency. The restrictions also make an exception for military flights and some additional special-purpose flights and call signs.
“From sunset to sunrise, there is a total ban on flights, with the exception of military aircraft… In the EP R129 zone, there is a 24-hour flight ban on civilian unmanned aircraft,”
The agency said.
How did NATO forces assist Poland in downing drones?
Polish F-16 fighter jets, Dutch F-35s, Italian AWACS surveillance planes, and NATO mid-air refuelling aircraft were deployed in a joint operation to take down drones that entered Polish airspace from Tuesday evening until morning, officials reported.
One drone crashed into a two-story brick home belonging to 82-year-old Tomasz Wesolowski in the eastern Polish village of Wyryki-Wola at 6:30 a.m. while he was watching news about the incident downstairs.
According to Reuters, Wesolowski said the house “needs to be torn down” because the roof was damaged and debris was scattered throughout the bedroom. Another blackened spot in a field in southeastern Poland marked the location of some other drones that had crashed.
How did Moscow respond to accusations about the drones?
On Wednesday, Russia’s Defence Ministry stated that its drones carried out a major attack on military sites in western Ukraine, although no locations in Poland were targeted. Moscow denied involvement in the incident, with a senior diplomat in Poland claiming the drones had come from the direction of Ukraine.
Russia’s Defence Ministry stated that its drones launched a significant attack on military facilities in western Ukraine, but claimed they were not intended to target any sites in Poland.
