On September 19, 2025, Latvia’s National Armed Forces (NBS) confirmed that drone debris had washed ashore near Vārve parish in Ventspils municipality, on the northwest coast of Latvia along the Baltic Sea. The wreckage, identified as part of a vertical stabilizer, was spotted on the beach and reported to authorities.
An Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team was dispatched to secure and analyze the object.
Šodien Ventspils novada Varves pagasta pludmalē atrasta no jūras izskalota drona astes atlūza. Uz notikuma vietu dodas NBS Nesprāgušas munīcijas neitralizēšanas grupa, lai veiktu atrastā objekta analīzi. pic.twitter.com/CnRkNsdpQv
— NBS (@Latvijas_armija) September 18, 2025
Defense minister confirms Gerbera drone
On social media, Latvian Minister of Defense Andris Spruds said that the debris was confirmed as the tail section of a Russian Gerbera decoy drone.
“We can confirm that today the debris washed ashore is the tail section of a Russian ‘decoy’ drone Gerbera,” Spruds stated. “NBS specialists on site confirmed the object is not explosive. The Armed Forces continue to cooperate with the State Police.”
The NBS stressed that the object posed no danger to the public. The Gerbera was originally developed as a decoy, designed to overwhelm and saturate enemy air defenses by mimicking the radar signature of Shahed loitering munitions. However, several Gerbera drones recovered in recent years were found to be carrying explosive payloads.
Links to regional incursions
The discovery highlights the risk of drone overspill from Russia’s war in Ukraine into NATO territory. The Gerbera drone has been repeatedly identified in recent months in neighboring countries, with serial numbers on the Ventspils wreckage matching those from drones that had previously violated Polish and Lithuanian airspace.
NATO fighters in both Poland and Lithuania have been scrambled to intercept intruding drones, at times using expensive air-to-air missiles against low-cost UAVs. Authorities in Warsaw and Vilnius have urged NATO to step up assistance to prevent such incidents from becoming routine.
In response, NATO has launched Operation Eastern Sentry, pooling air assets from several member states to strengthen deterrence and, if necessary, intercept further violations.