Sprengstoff-Drohne in Leipzig: Innenminister sehen Zeitdruck bei Drohnen-Abwehrfähigkeiten

In a telephone conference, the Interior Ministers of the federal government and the states emphasized the urgent need to advance capabilities for countering potentially dangerous drones. Saxon Interior Minister Armin Schuster (CDU) called for mutual assistance, joint research, and procurement. He stressed that the Saxony state government would work intensively with the airport operator to ensure that Leipzig/Halle Airport is extremely prioritized and equipped with drone defense technology and detection by the federal government, especially considering its central importance as one of the largest European freight airports.

The drone discovered at Leipzig/Halle Airport on Tuesday evening was packed with explosives and was found in the vicinity of several Ukrainian freight aircraft. The incident was taken very seriously by security forces. The Federal Prosecutor's Office is handling the investigation, describing it as a "serious attack on Germany's transport and logistics infrastructure."

Niedersachsen's Interior Minister Daniela Behrens (SPD) noted that while flighpports are addressed in the federal drone defense concept, Hannover, for example, is not. She considered this a gap that could not be accepted. Behrens also criticized that the federal government had no clear idea regarding the role of ports in critical infrastructure.

She, along with Bremen's Interior Minister Eva Högl (SPD), advocated for a special Interior Ministry conference to discuss drone defense in more depth. Högl acknowledged a deficiency in technology that needed to be addressed as quickly as possible. The situation is serious, involving capabilities rather than responsibilities, said Schuster, rejecting claims of a "responsibility chaos" by some experts and politicians.

The real challenge is keeping the capabilities of all involved parties for the detection and defense of highly professional drones up to date. Behrens called for a separate Interior Ministry conference regarding the drone defense system for Flughafen Hannover, as a similar incident had occurred in Hannover, forcing the deployment of the federal police command, which they could not manage alone.

Both Bremen and Hannover's airports experienced temporary flight suspensions following the discovery of a drone, with the federal police responsible for air security at 13 German airports, including Bremen and Hannover. However, these two airports are not among the eight designated for prioritized equipment with stationary technology for drone detection and defense by the federal Interior Ministry.