Gen. Wiesław Kukuła, Chief of the General Staff, said Polish airspace was violated repeatedly overnight and “unmanned aircraft that posed a direct threat were shot down.”
The response, he added, was executed in real time with aircraft playing the decisive role.
Kukuła said pilots had advance authorization to engage. “They already had consent to destroy [targets] if a threat to the Republic of Poland arose. We told them: you have a clear shot—do it,” he told TVN24, describing a rapid activation of the air-defense system involving Polish and allied aircrews.
A key challenge was separating decoys from drones carrying warheads, such as Shahed-type systems that can hold 5–15 kg of explosives, he said.
“We do not waste resources on the smallest objects testing our defenses. We focus on missiles and drones with warheads,” Kukuła added.
Decisions were taken at the Air Operations Center, he said, with Gen. Maciej Klisz, the head of the operational command, setting priorities while politicians present “did not interfere.” The last drone was downed at 6:38 a.m., according to Kukuła.
Addressing criticism that costly interceptors were used on relatively small targets, Kukuła said the calculus was straightforward. “It’s not the value of the missile that matters, but the value of what the drone can destroy. If it is a Polish life, it has no price. We will use a missile a hundred times more expensive if it saves even one Polish life,” he said.
Kukuła highlighted the role of F-35s, which he said used advanced sensors to detect objects invisible to ground radars. “It was a game changer,” he said, noting the jets’ support to Poland’s F-16s and adding that the first Polish F-35s are due to land in Łask next year.
The general said Belarus provided advance warning that drones were moving through its airspace toward Poland — an unexpected step given tensions at the land border. “We did not reject it,” he said, adding that Poland responded positively by sharing data on objects heading toward Belarus.
Poland coordinated with NATO throughout the operation and was prepared for escalation measures, Kukuła said, ranging from shutting civilian airports to readying the entry of additional allied forces from Germany and other countries.
(jh)
Source: PAP