“We received it last night three reports of drones over Kleine Brogel, larger and flying at higher altitudes. A drone jammer was used, but to no avail. The helicopter and police cars chased the drones, but lost them after a few kilometers,” wrote the Belgian minister, adding that the drones were sent over the base on purpose.
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What drones were spotted over the Belgian base?
Who is the Minister of Defense of Belgium?
What is stored in the Kleine-Brogel database?
What drone incidents have occurred in NATO?
Also on the night from Friday to Saturday, an unauthorized drone was spotted near the base. US nuclear weapons are stored at the base, and F-35 fighter jets are to be stationed there from 2027.
“It wasn't the work of amateurs”
Recently, drones were also spotted over the Elsenborn bases in the east and Marche-en-Famenne in the southeast of Belgium. Reuters reported that the drones were observed at night, which made it impossible to determine the type of devices used. “It was not the work of amateurs, but of experienced drone pilots” – said the head of the Ministry of Defense then.
The drone was supposed to be a “game changer”, it falls on cars. Marcin Wyrł: people from the army are surprised what they are supposed to do
At the turn of September and October, the media reported that in 2024 in sensitive areas of the Belgian airspace, such as airports and military areas, approximately 31 thousand were detected. drone flights. SkeyDrone, a subsidiary of air traffic controller Skeyes, said 90 percent of them were unauthorized flights.
Numerous problems with drones over NATO countries
NATO countries have been on high alert in recent weeks after observing drones and other air attacks, including: in Copenhagen, Munich, Poland and the Baltic countries.
On Friday, drones disrupted the operation of the Berlin airport. As reported by AFP, German authorities believe that Russia may have been behind the incident. In recent days, the Lithuanian authorities have had to close the airspace over Vilnius airport several times when smuggling balloons from Belarus appeared nearby.
At the beginning of October, the European Commission proposed four European defense projects, including an anti-drone system and a plan to strengthen the eastern border, as part of actions aimed at increasing the European Union's defense capabilities by 2030.
