A suspected Russian Kh-101 missile landed in eastern Poland on July 30, 2026, creating a 33-foot (10-meter) crater during a massive aerial assault on Ukraine that killed at least eight people.
In response, Polish and NATO allied military forces scrambled fighter jets to secure the region’s airspace.
Polish police found the crater and scattered debris in a field near the village of Tarnawa-Kolonia in the Lublin province, following reports of an explosion.
The missile disappeared from army radars tracking it in domestic airspace during Russian strikes on Ukraine, authorities said on Thursday.
‘An unidentified object moving westward was detected in Polish airspace,’ the operational command of the armed forces said on X, adding that it disappeared from radars soon after the sighting at 3.40am.
‘A Mi-24 helicopter that went to the object’s last location to verify and confirm the radar data pinpointed the likely crash site, it added.
Later, Prime Minister Donald Tusk confirmed the object was a missile, saying: ‘From the early morning hours, we have all been very strongly mobilised.
‘During Russia’s massive missile attack on Ukraine, a serious incident also occurred in Poland. A missile fell in the village of Tarnowa-Kolonia. Fortunately, there are no reports of casualties or damage.’
