European airspace and military installations have faced a series of drone incursions in recent months, causing widespread disruptions and raising concerns over the security of critical infrastructure.
Multiple countries have recorded incidents that led to airport shutdowns, diverted flights, and military alerts, with investigations under way to determine the origins of the aerial activity.
Munich Airport in Germany was forced to halt flight operations twice within 24 hours after unconfirmed drone sightings this week.
Germany's Munich Airport reopened Saturday morning after authorities shut it down the night before for the second time in less than 24 hours after two additional drone sightings, officials said.
Hans-Christian Mathiesen, vice president of defence programs at Sky-Watch, a Danish maker of a fixed-wing combat drone that is being used in Ukraine, said “it could be anybody” who could carry out a drone flyover like the one at Munich airport.
“If you have a drone, you can always fly it into restricted airspace and disrupt activity. So everything from boys not thinking about what they're doing — just fooling around — to someone that is doing it with a purpose: Criminal organisations, state actors, you name it,” said Mathiesen, whose company is involved in the fast-evolving drone ecosystem.
On Thursday night, runways were closed shortly after 10 pm local time, grounding 17 flights and diverting 15 others to airports in Germany and Austria.
Around 3,000 passengers were affected, many of whom spent the night in terminals where camp beds, blankets and food were distributed.
Flights resumed at 5 am on Friday but were suspended again later that evening when drones were again reported near take-off and landing zones.
The airport confirmed that 23 flights were diverted, 12 inbound flights cancelled and 48 departures either cancelled or delayed, leaving 6,500 passengers stranded.
Helicopters were deployed by federal police but no drones were located. Interior minister Alexander Dobrindt said legislation would be brought forward to allow police to request military support in shooting down drones.
Germany’s national air navigation service has logged 144 drone overflights this year, with 35 near Frankfurt Airport.
On the same night, Belgium reported multiple drones flying above the Elsenborn military base near the German border.
Defence minister Theo Francken called the activity suspicious and unknown, with Belgian broadcaster VRT reporting that as many as 15 drones were sighted.
The defence ministry said the drones departed towards Germany and confirmed that this was the first incident of its kind at the base, which functions primarily as an army training facility. An investigation has been opened.
In Denmark, the defence ministry confirmed on September 28 that drones were observed above Skrydstrup Air Base and the Jutland Dragoon Regiment base.
Authorities deployed unspecified “capacities” and banned all civilian drone flights nationwide between September 29 and October 4, coinciding with an EU summit in Copenhagen.
The Danish government received anti-drone systems from Germany and Sweden to secure the summit, while hundreds of public sightings are still under review.
Flights resumed by 3:22 am local time. Danish police noted that two or three large drones were also spotted near Copenhagen Airport on September 23, forcing a shutdown that lasted nearly four hours and diverted 50 flights.
Police described the drones as large and controlled by capable operators.
In Norway, Oslo Airport closed airspace temporarily in late September after drones were seen overhead.
France confirmed unidentified drones flew over the Mourmelon-le-Grand military base on September 22.
Local media reported that the base houses the 501 Tank Regiment, which has trained Ukrainian soldiers.
Officials said the drones were not operated by military personnel, were not small in size, and triggered heightened security around storage facilities.
The French Navy detained a Russian-linked tanker suspected of involvement in earlier drone incursions near Denmark.
The ship, now operating under the names Pushpa and Boracay, was searched by commandos but no drones or launch equipment were found. The vessel has since resumed its journey, appearing bound for the Suez Canal.
Romania recorded multiple airspace violations in September. On September 8, a Russian drone crossed into Romanian territory during strikes on Ukraine, prompting the deployment of F-16 fighter jets.
On September 13, another drone was detected near the village of Chilia Veche before disappearing from radar.
Authorities identified it as a Geran, the Russian name for a Shahed-136 drone, but chose not to shoot it down under recently granted powers.
Poland has been among the most heavily affected countries. During the night of September 9–10, between 19 and 23 drones entered Polish airspace during Russian strikes on Ukraine.
Nato and Polish fighter jets scrambled, shooting down multiple objects while debris damaged at least one home in Wyryki-Wola.
Several airports, including Rzeszow, were temporarily closed. Prime Minister Donald Tusk described the incursion as the closest Poland had been to open conflict since the Second World War.
Nato allies condemned the incident, and Poland invoked Article 4 of the Nato treaty to call for consultations. Officials said at least five drones appeared to have been headed for Rzeszow airport, a critical hub for military supplies to Ukraine.
Latvia reported that a drone entered its airspace from Belarus on September 8, with President Edgars Rinkevics confirming investigations were under way.
Lithuania has also reported intrusions. A drone armed with explosives was discovered in a training area on July 28 after entering from Russia.
Another Russian drone entered Lithuanian airspace on July 10, leading the government to request immediate Nato assistance to bolster air defences.
Drone incursions have been recorded in at least ten European countries since July, including Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, France, Romania, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.
Around 90 per cent were discovered by pilots or air traffic controllers.
European leaders addressed the issue during the Copenhagen summit this week, vowing to strengthen anti-drone defences.
On September 12, Nato had pledged increased vigilance across the Baltic states, while the European Union's initiative to establish a "drone wall" along its eastern frontier with Russia was formally announced on September 26.
While speculation has centred on possible Russian involvement, Kremlin officials have denied responsibility.
Security experts caution that responsibility could lie with a wide range of actors, from individuals to organised criminal groups or state-sponsored operations.
With incidents growing more frequent, European governments are treating the threat as a priority. Interior and defence ministers across the bloc have pledged to expand detection capabilities and strengthen coordination in response to what many see as a new dimension of security risk.