Lithuania neutralizes drone from Belarus using allied aircraft

Following the detection of a drone in the Vilnius and Kaunas counties, an air threat was declared and subsequently canceled after the drone was destroyed. The drone, which reportedly entered Lithuanian airspace from Belarus, was intercepted and neutralized with missile weaponry by Italian allied fighter jets departing from the Šiauliai Aviation Base. The interception occurred near Pratkūnai village in the Kaišiadorys district.

In response to the incident, Vilnius Mayor Valdas Benkunskas noted a surge in downloads for the KOVAS civil defense and information app. While the app has surpassed 90,000 downloads, Benkunskas observed that usage spikes significantly only during active threats. For instance, following the first air threat announcement in May, over 40,000 residents downloaded the app within two days. The municipality is urging citizens to prepare in advance by identifying safe zones, shelters, and maintaining emergency kits rather than waiting for emergencies to occur.