Two drones crashed in southeastern Finland near Kouvola on March 29, 2026, with the Finnish Air Force confirming one as a Ukrainian AN-196 Liutyi long-range attack drone. The incidents occurred 130 kilometers northeast of Helsinki and 70 kilometers from the Russian border, prompting President Alexander Stubb to call it a serious sovereignty violation and convene an emergency government meeting.
Finnish authorities detected slow-moving, low-altitude objects over the Baltic Sea and southeastern Finland early that morning. F/A-18 Hornet fighters scrambled at 8:45 a.m. local time, with a pilot visually identifying the AN-196 Liutyi but holding fire to avoid collateral damage. The drone crashed north of Kouvola; the second fell east of the city. No injuries or damage occurred, and some initial detections were flocks of birds.
The AN-196 Liutyi, meaning “fierce” in Ukrainian and produced by Ukroboronprom under Antonov, features a 6.7-meter wingspan, 4.4-meter length, 250-300 kg takeoff weight, and up to 75 kg warhead. Powered by a rear gasoline engine with three-blade propeller, it achieves over 1,000 km range using satellite, inertial, and terrain-matching navigation. Developed in late 2022 as a counter to Russia’s Iranian Shahed-136 drones, it has struck Russian oil refineries and energy sites.
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo stated both drones were likely Ukrainian and fell unaided. Defense Minister Antti Häkkänen emphasized immediate response and ongoing investigation. The crashes coincided with Ukraine’s third weekly strike on Russia’s Ust-Luga oil terminal near the Gulf of Finland, handling 700,000 barrels daily, amid a campaign targeting Baltic coast infrastructure. Officials suspect Russian electronic warfare caused deviation into Finnish airspace, echoing prior incidents in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.