On Tuesday, a Russian SU-24MR military jet mistakenly entered Polish airspace in the Gdansk Bay area of the Baltic Sea due to a reported navigation system failure, as announced by the Operational Command of the Polish armed forces.
The aircraft ventured 6.5 km (4 miles) into Polish airspace, remaining briefly for over a minute before altering its course, according to the Operational Command.
Polish authorities overseeing airspace were in communication with the Russian side, which acknowledged the airspace violation, attributing it to a technical glitch in the jet's navigation system.
The Polish army command stated, "The flight path was promptly adjusted following the intervention of the Russian Federation Armed Forces navigator."
The jet originated from Russia's Kaliningrad exclave, the report mentioned.
In a late Tuesday interview with TVN24 broadcaster, Polish Interior Minister Tomasz Siemoniak pointed out ongoing Russian activities in the Baltic region over recent years, emphasizing the importance of promptly detecting and addressing airspace intrusions.
He noted, "It's vital that our monitoring systems swiftly detected the unauthorized entry and that the aircraft departed upon being notified of the violation."
Siemoniak also indicated that the Polish foreign ministry would evaluate the incident and formulate a response.