Germany Doubles Anti-Drone Unit After Explosive Drone Breach at NATO Hub

Germany has doubled the size of its federal police anti-drone unit following an explosive drone incident at Leipzig/Halle Airport, a crucial NATO logistics center. US intelligence sources reportedly attribute the sabotage operation to Russia. The Interior Ministry announced on Monday, Aug. 10, that the specialized counter-drone team will grow from 200 personnel to 300, with operational bases expanding from four to eight.

Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt formally inaugurates a new drone technology research center in cooperation with the German Aerospace Center next week. The incident, discovered last week, involved a drone with explosives and a detonator found in a restricted area near Ukrainian Antonov cargo aircraft. Dobrindt characterized the breach as a "professional hybrid attack scenario" potentially involving a foreign power and warned the threat posed by an explosives-equipped drone on airport grounds.

US officials, citing two sources, believe the attack is linked to the Russian government, though German authorities have not formally attributed the incident to Moscow. The suspected Russian connection follows Western concerns over Moscow using sabotage, espionage, cyberattacks, and covert operations against European countries supporting Ukraine.

Dobrindt stated Germany is a daily target of such hybrid warfare, including espionage, sabotage, cyberattacks, and foreign operations aimed at destabilizing the nation or causing harm. Leipzig/Halle Airport, one of Europe's largest freight hubs, serves as NATO's Strategic Airlift International Solution's primary operating base, utilizing Ukrainian Antonov aircraft for military equipment transport.

German federal prosecutors launched a counterterrorism investigation into the serious attack, which could impact both domestic and foreign security.