Unidentified drones may have spied on critical infrastructure in Germany, media reports
Drones spotted last week over the city of Kiel and other parts of Germany’s Schleswig-Holstein state may have been surveilling critical infrastructure, Der Spiegel reported on Oct. 1, citing its undisclosed sources.
The report comes amid a rise in Russian drone and aircraft activity within the airspace of several NATO countries, along with sightings of unidentified aerial vehicles.
According to Der Spiegel, the drones flew over power plants, a university hospital, military installations, and the official residence of Schleswig-Holstein’s state government.
Two small drones were spotted flying over the ThyssenKrupp naval shipyard on the evening of Sept. 25. They were later seen above the university hospital, the coastal power plant, and the Kiel Canal, also known as the Nord-Ostsee-Kanal.
Later that night, a formation led by a large drone, accompanied by several smaller ones, was observed over the Kiel Fjord. The group flew over the state parliament building and is believed to have monitored the Heide oil refinery, a key facility supplying fuel to Hamburg Airport.
Schleswig-Holstein Interior Minister Sabine Sutterlin-Waack confirmed that a possible espionage operation is under investigation, though no further details were provided.
Suspicious drone activity was also reported above a German Armed Forces base in Sanitz and over the naval command headquarters in Rostock.
German police also discovered on Sept. 29 drones near the Rostock seaport. According to authorities, the aircraft were large quadcopters weighing over 2.5 kilograms and were flying in a "coordinated and synchronized" manner.
Similar drone sightings in recent weeks have disrupted operations at major transportation hubs, including Oslo Airport in Norway and Copenhagen Airport in Denmark, both of which were temporarily shut down as a precaution.
An unidentified drone was also observed flying over the Norwegian Equinor-operated Sleipner gas field in the North Sea on Sept. 29. A day later, another drone was recorded flying over Bronnoysund Airport in Norway.
In early September, Polish forces shot down several Russian drones that had entered their airspace. A Russian drone was also detected over Romanian territory a few days later, though Bucharest opted not to engage it.
Three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets also briefly entered Estonian airspace on Sept. 19, remaining there for 12 minutes before being intercepted by NATO forces.
