Germany Creates Anti-Drone Strike Teams, Rushes Help To Belgium After Europe Realizes It’s Years Behind On Airspace Defense

Germany is establishing rapid-response counter-drone units and has deployed military specialists to Belgium following a wave of mysterious drone sightings that forced multiple airport closures across Europe, exposing critical gaps in the continent’s airspace security infrastructure.

“These anti-drone units are being established right now,” Lieutenant General Alexander Sollfrank, who heads Germany’s joint operations command and oversees the country’s defense planning, told Reuters in an interview. The German military expert leads the Bundeswehr’s efforts to counter what European officials increasingly characterize as coordinated reconnaissance operations targeting critical infrastructure.

The deployment comes as Belgium requested emergency assistance after unidentified drones repeatedly shut down Brussels Airport and Liège Airport this week, stranding thousands of passengers and raising urgent questions about Europe’s ability to protect its airspace from cheap, readily available drone technology.

German Counter-Drone Technology Deployed To Belgium And Denmark

Germany’s defense ministry confirmed late Thursday it was sending counter-drone experts to Belgium after a formal request from Brussels. An advance Air Force unit has already arrived to assess Belgium’s counter-drone needs and coordinate with Belgian Armed Forces on deployment of detection sensors, electronic warfare systems, and response protocols.

The German specialists bring sophisticated counter-drone capabilities that include multiple detection and neutralization methods. “They have various systems to spot and counter drones. We have the option, for example, to assume control over a drone and land it at a specific location,” Sollfrank explained to Reuters.

The counter-drone teams are equipped with sensors for detection, interceptor drones that ram hostile aircraft, and specialized drones that can deploy nets to capture and bring down unauthorized drones. Sollfrank declined to provide additional operational details, citing security concerns, but confirmed that a similar German team deployed to Copenhagen last month during an EU summit had successfully operated using this mix of sensors and “effectors.”

Belgium’s Airport Crisis Triggers Emergency Military Response

Belgium’s request for German assistance came after Liège Airport resumed flights Friday following a temporary drone-related closure—the second such incident in less than a week. On Tuesday, drones spotted flying over Brussels Airport and Liège forced the diversion of dozens of incoming planes and grounded numerous departing flights.

The airport disruptions followed even more concerning incidents at Belgian military installations. Between November 1-3, four drones conducted systematic surveillance over Kleine-Brogel Air Base, one of NATO’s most sensitive facilities that houses U.S. nuclear weapons and Belgian F-16 fighters.

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever convened the National Security Council Thursday morning after Belgian security services concluded they have “no reasonable doubt” Russia orchestrated the incursions, according to previous DroneXL reporting.

Wave Of Drone Sightings Paralyzes European Airports

The Belgian incidents represent just the latest chapter in an escalating pattern of drone sightings that has paralyzed major European airports throughout September, October, and November 2025.

Sightings of drones over airports and military bases have become a persistent problem across Europe in recent months, forcing temporary closures of airports in several countries including Sweden on Thursday. Denmark’s Copenhagen Airport shut down for nearly four hours on September 22, while Norway’s Oslo Airport closed for three hours the same evening.

Germany itself experienced the crisis firsthand when Munich Airport suffered two drone-related shutdowns in two days in early October. A classified German security report later revealed the aircraft were military reconnaissance drones, not hobbyist quadcopters—transforming what appeared to be mysterious sightings into confirmed military-grade aerial surveillance operations.

Some European officials have blamed the incidents on “hybrid warfare” by Russia, pointing to a pattern of Russian drone violations of NATO airspace in Poland, Romania, and Estonia. Moscow has consistently denied any connection with the incidents.

DroneXL’s Take

The scramble to deploy German counter-drone teams exposes an uncomfortable truth: Europe is paying the price for years of procurement delays and bureaucratic inertia on counter-drone technology. Belgian Defense Minister Theo Francken admitted his country is “four years behind” where it should be on anti-drone systems, telling La Première radio that “We should have bought air defense systems to combat drones five or 10 years ago. NATO has been saying this for years.”

The irony is striking. While European nations debated procurement timelines and defense budgets, Ukraine transformed into the world’s premier drone warfare laboratory out of necessity. Ukrainian forces now deploy 9,000 drones daily and have developed $2,500 interceptor drones that are fundamentally reshaping air defense doctrine. Norway became the first NATO country to field an operational drone swarm system in October, and multiple NATO members are now literally going to school on Ukrainian drone warfare tactics they should have been developing themselves for the past decade.

Germany’s rapid response demonstrates that some European militaries are finally taking the drone threat seriously. But the fact that Belgium needed to call for emergency assistance after a few days of airport closures reveals how unprepared most European nations remain. The EU’s proposed “drone wall” defense system along the eastern border has accelerated from concept to procurement, with Baltic states already awarding tens of millions in contracts—but these are reactive measures to a threat that’s been visible for years.

The broader question is whether this crisis will finally force European defense establishments to abandon their slow-moving procurement cycles in favor of rapid-iteration development models proven effective in Ukraine. Russia and China aren’t waiting for five-year development timelines. Ukraine deploys 270,000 drones monthly in actual combat operations. The technological race that military experts have warned about isn’t hypothetical—it’s happening right now, and countries that can’t adapt their procurement systems to match the pace of innovation will find themselves dangerously outmatched.

What do you think? Share your thoughts in the comments below.