Germany to double anti-drone team after explosive drone found at Leipzig airport
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4 days · 5 summary articles
Germany is facing daily hybrid warfare attacks from foreign powers, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said in an interview with Bild am Sonntag published on Sunday. The warning follows the discovery of an explosive-laden drone at Leipzig/Halle Airport on Tuesday, which Dobrindt described as posing a “new quality of danger.”
The drone, found near a Ukrainian cargo aircraft, was defused by federal police experts. Leipzig/Halle Airport serves as a key hub for NATO’s Strategic Airlift International Solution and Ukrainian Antonov transport flights supporting military operations. On Thursday, two drones were spotted over a Bundeswehr base in Mechernich, North Rhine-Westphalia, where Patriot missile system components are stored, according to a statement from the German Joint Force Command. Local police in Euskirchen have opened an investigation.
Dobrindt told Bild that espionage, sabotage, cyberattacks, and covert operations by foreign powers aimed at destabilizing Germany are a constant reality. He did not name any specific countries. Some German lawmakers have pointed to Russia, which has been at war with Ukraine since 2022. The Russian Embassy in Berlin dismissed the Leipzig incident as a “fabricated provocation” and part of “anti-Russian hysteria” in a statement on Friday.
U.S. intelligence agencies have assessed that the drone found at Leipzig/Halle Airport was of Russian origin, with its explosives resembling military-grade material, according to reports by CNN and The Wall Street Journal cited in Greek and Finnish media. German officials have not publicly confirmed this assessment.
In response to the incidents, Dobrindt’s ministry plans to double the federal government’s anti-drone team from 150 to 300 personnel and expand its network of bases from four to eight, Bild reported. Transport Minister Steffen Bilger announced plans to accelerate the deployment of advanced drone detection systems, such as the EchoShield radar, at German airports. Frankfurt and Munich airports already have enhanced detection capabilities, but Bilger emphasized the need for rapid improvements at other facilities.
The drone incidents have renewed concerns about the spillover of Russia’s war in Ukraine into NATO states. On Saturday, a drone exploded near Bulgaria’s Trans-Balkan gas pipeline, though Bulgarian authorities stated there was no evidence of intentional sabotage. Ukraine is cooperating with Bulgarian officials to investigate the incident.
German authorities continue to review CCTV footage from the Leipzig airport, where the drone initially hovered between two Antonov cargo planes on July 28 before landing near an employee. The airport was temporarily shut down on Aug. 6, and flights were diverted.
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