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Germany Gives Military Authority to Shoot Down Unauthorized Drones


There has been a spate of unmanned aerial vehicle sightings near military bases across the country.

Germany’s Cabinet approved plans on Wednesday authorizing its armed forces to shoot down illegal drones.

The move follows repeated reports of illegal flights over critical infrastructure, according to the country’s Interior Ministry.

A translation of a statement from German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said: “Drones as a tool for espionage and sabotage can pose a serious threat, especially to our critical infrastructure.

“Especially since [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s war of aggression against Ukraine, we have seen that drones are being used more and more frequently, which pose an increasing challenge for the police and their current technology.

“It is therefore necessary that we create the authority in the Aviation Security Act that allows the Bundeswehr [armed forces] to intervene in the event of serious dangers—including, as a last resort, to shoot down illegally flying drones.”

The ministry also said in a statement that “security services have noted that reports of sightings of uncooperative drones over critical infrastructure and military properties in Germany are increasing.”

“Espionage or sabotage are regularly considered as a possible reason,” it said.

Under the planned amendment to the Aviation Security Act, local authorities could ask the military to take action if they so choose, and the armed forces would be able to use force against illegal drones in the event of an imminent and particularly serious accident, the draft said.

Under current regulations, soldiers can assist the police in forcing an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to change direction, land, threaten to shoot it down, or fire warning shots.

But under the new proposals, a drone could be shot down by the army if it is believed the device is being “used against the lives of people or against a critical facility, and the use of armed force is the only means of averting this present danger,” the ministry said.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz plans to push the amendment through the Bundestag lower house of parliament before a federal election on Feb. 23, but given the current, fractured nature of German politics, it is not certain he will manage to achieve a majority.

However, German government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said that passing the law was “quite possible” because “what is being regulated here is undisputed.”
In one of the latest instances of UAVs being spotted, a drone was seen over a military base near Manching over the weekend, police in Bavaria said on Monday, adding that they were investigating suspected Russian espionage.

Drones were also spotted near the Manching base over three days in December 2024, the statement said, and another unauthorized overflight took place during the same month over a separate military installation some 15 miles away in Neuburg an der Donau.

The Manching site hosts a military aerodrome and is where the Eurofighter jet is developed by Airbus.

Elsewhere, several drones have recently been spotted over an industrial zone in Brunsbüttel near the North Sea and near the American airbase at Ramstein.

In December 2024, German federal police, the Bundeskriminalamt, warned companies that there could be Russian saboteurs among their employees and contractors.

Police pointed to unauthorized drone flights over military facilities, as well as above or near LNG and oil terminals, seaports, and logistics companies, as recent examples of suspected sabotage by Russian state actors.

Moscow has denied any involvement.

The head of Germany’s foreign intelligence service, Bruno Kahl, said in November 2024 that these alleged Russian acts of sabotage against Western targets could eventually prompt NATO to invoke the alliance’s Article 5 mutual defense clause.

Under Article 5, if a member is attacked, the others in the alliance are obliged to help it respond to the threat.

Reuters contributed to this report.



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