Six drones detected over the Patriot military facility in Germany

Incident with drones over Bundeswehr military facility

According to Рубрика — Політика: On the night between Thursday and Friday, several suspicious drone flights were detected over the Bundeswehr military facility in Mechernich, located in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia. At the facility where Patriot air defense systems are serviced and repaired, employees of a private security company recorded six drone flyovers from 10 PM to 5 AM, while local police observed at least one flyover. The Bundeswehr military police monitored the incident from a distance of about 40 meters and preliminarily identified the drone as a Fly-380 VTOL.

Drone specifications and investigation

The Fly-380 VTOL drone has a wingspan of about 3.8 meters, a range of up to 400 km, a speed of up to 150 km/h, and is capable of carrying over 10 kg of cargo. The operational command of the Bundeswehr officially confirmed only two instances of drone flyovers, while the investigation found no signs that it involved a geodetic drone accidentally deviating from its route. The police are investigating the case on suspicion of dangerous photographing of military facilities, weaponry, or sensitive areas.

The facility, unofficially referred to as the 'Patriot workshop,' is an underground complex situated at a depth of about 130 meters, with a protected storage area of approximately 30,000 square meters. According to journalists, this facility is probably the only one of its kind in Europe. Suspicious drone flights over military facilities, including naval bases and training locations for Ukrainian military personnel, are regularly recorded in Germany. German security authorities suspect that Russian state structures or agents recruited by them may be behind some of these cases.

This incident highlights the growing concern regarding the safety of military facilities in Germany, particularly in the context of geopolitical tensions in Europe. Suspicious drone flights, which are frequently observed over military bases, may indicate attempts to gather intelligence information. German law enforcement is actively investigating these cases, which raises questions not only about the safety of specific facilities but also about the broader security of the region.