“As of today, there is a plan to deploy additional air defense forces closer to the border because we’re seeing certain trends. We more or less know the directions, we know where these corridors might pass. This is already the second incident – we will strengthen exactly in this area,” the Chief of Defense of the Lithuanian Armed Forces, General Raimundas Vaikšnoras, said.
Vaikšnoras also stated that there are plans to deepen coordination with the State Border Guard Service, since “without their eyes in the sky and on the ground, without what they see and hear, it’s difficult to identify anything.”
At the same time, the military command wants to speed up the procurement of short-range radars and other equipment that would help detect drones.
According to Vaikšnoras, the Sky Fortress acoustic drone detection system is expected to be launched along the border.
“This is a system of microphones that detects objects based on acoustic signals – it’s the kind used by the Ukrainians. We plan to implement it along the entire border area. This way, we’ll be able to identify flying objects in advance, distinguishing between paragliders, balloons, and small aircraft. It will simplify and speed up the decision-making process,” the military high-ranking official noted.
Vaikšnoras clarified that, for now, Lithuania only has equipment capable of registering objects in the air, but not identifying what exactly has entered its airspace.
Drone in Lithuanian airspace
On Monday, July 28, an unidentified drone entered Lithuanian airspace from the territory of Belarus.
The drone was last seen near Vilnius. A search for its debris is ongoing.
Earlier, on July 10, a drone resembling a Shahed was spotted over Lithuania. It crashed on Lithuanian territory.