Description: The German government announced that the airport in Munich has been closed for 24 hours following drone sightings by passengers and the airport’s staff. The airport’s administration has stated that approximately 3 thousand passengers were left stranded for hours and flights were either delayed or cancelled awaiting the assessment from the security services. The incident represents only the latest in a line of disruptions across Europe, where drone sightings have caused the closure of the airports in Copenhagen, Oslo and were noticed flying across critical infrastructure in Germany and Belgium. Germany’s Interior Minister, Alexander Dobrindt, stated that Germany would propose introducing an emergency law which would allow security services to shoot down drones in order to prevent large – scale disruptions such as airport closures. Last week, France boarded a ship pertaining to Russia’s shadow fleet which was suspected of being used as a launchpad for these operations, however, no concrete evidence was found. Russia has denied any allegations that their government is behind the attacks and accused NATO of artificially provoking and stoking tensions.
Impact: Europe’s air defense problems enter a protracted period of disruptions which have economic, logistical and security ramifications. With attribution to the drone incursions difficult to prove, the only significant factor remaining is that some form of air defense against drones needs to be immediately introduced in order for EU and NATO countries to avoid large – scale interferences in the future. The incursions, despite causing airport closures and elevation of the levels of readiness within military bases, are also reportedly being used as information gathering tools which could be detrimental to the security of Europe’s military capabilities and other forms of critical infrastructure such as airports and key energy centers. The incidents show an uptick in activity, which signifies their continuation in the short to mid – term period of time, which would most likely prompt EU countries to introduce emergency laws allowing the security services to neutralize the air threats and additionally approve programs and technologies which would allow significant bolstering of air defense capabilities.