Hundreds of drones recorded over Bundeswehr bases
Since the start of Russia's full-scale war in Ukraine, there has been a sharp increase in reports of drones being spotted near Bundeswehr facilities in Germany. In recent years, there have been several hundred reports of possible drone flights over military facilities.
**Hundreds of drones detected over Bundeswehr bases: Germany fights security threats**
The German Armed Forces – Bundeswehr – have reported a significant increase in drone sightings near military facilities in the country in recent years. This was reported by a representative of the Bundeswehr Operational Command in an interview with the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (RND) publication group on August 12.
According to him, there have been several hundred reports of possible drones flying over Bundeswehr facilities over the past few years. While in most cases, single drones have been observed, in some cases several devices have been detected near military facilities at the same time, i.e. swarms of drones.
The Bundeswehr representative noted that the security situation in Germany and Europe in general has changed dramatically in recent years. The country faces a variety of hybrid threats almost every day. These include disinformation, cyberattacks, espionage, and sabotage.
**Recent incidents:**
* **Drones over Mechernich military base:** Two drones were spotted over the important Mechernich military base in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia at the end of last week. The incident is currently under investigation by local police.
* **Leipzig airport incident:** The incident that occurred at Leipzig airport on the night of August 5th has caused a great resonance in Germany. According to information, a drone, the origin of which is still unknown, crashed into a Ukrainian cargo plane at the airport. The drone was equipped with an explosive device with a detonator, but for unknown reasons the explosive device did not go off. The investigation into this incident is being conducted by the German Federal Prosecutor's Office. It is not yet known who was operating the drone, where it was launched from, or what its intended purpose was.
**Counter-drone measures:**
Following these incidents, German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt announced new measures to strengthen the country's counter-drone capabilities. According to him, a new technology center for countering drones is being established at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) test site in the federal state of Saxony-Anhalt. The center will research counter-drone technologies, develop new solutions, and test them before they are put into practice.
German authorities are assessing the emergence of drones near military facilities against the backdrop of broader hybrid threats that affect the security of the country and Europe. At present, there is no single conclusion about who is behind all the drone flights that have been recorded.