Drone album on Denmark: Aalborgs Airport on alert!

Drone album on Denmark: Aalborgs Airport on alert!

In Denmark, drone incidents recently caused alarm willingness, especially at Aalborg Airport. The airspace over the airport was closed on Thursday night due to sightings of drones and only reopened on Friday morning. Police confirmations of the drone sightings are still pending, but the Danish government feels caused by hybrid attacks due to the incidents in the past few days. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen described the incidents as "the most difficult attack on Danish critical infrastructure" and warned of a possible increase in drone flights. The country has also become the target of cyber and hybrid attacks in recent weeks, as Frederiksen noted.

Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen assumes that a "professional actor" will be behind the drone flights, but emphasizes that no direct military threat to Denmark has been determined. Minister of Justice Peter Hummelgaard also expressed that the overfORE should serve to spread fear. Various Danish airports were affected, including Alyborg, Esbjerg, Skrydstrup and Sønderborg, which underlines the systematic threat with which the country is confronted. The Danish government is now planning to purchase new techniques for drone recognition and neutralization and is working on a law that should enable operators of critical infrastructure to shoot drones.

International reactions and support

France offered Denmark support, while President Emmanuel Macron expressed his solidarity and signaled the willingness to support the security assessment. In addition, Danish security authorities, together with the police, announced a comprehensive examination of the incidents to determine who is responsible for these incidents. Incidents of this type resemble hybrid war leaders as observed in other European countries. The Danish secret service manager Lars Ahrenkiel pointed out that there is an "increased danger of Russian sabotage" and that the recent incidents are related to a wave of airspace injuries in Poland, Estonia and Romania.

Russia contradicted these claims and described the allegations as "absurd speculation" and spoke of a "staged provocation". In this context, NATO has evaluated the incidents as targeted provocations of Moscow, and there are considerations whether Article 4 of the NATO contract should be activated that provides for advice on threats. Denmark is therefore well advised to develop clear guidelines for drone defense in order to better protect themselves from hybrid threats.

Legal framework and technical measures

The legal basics for defense drones are complex and vary depending on the context. In Germany, the state police are responsible for drone defense outside of airports, while the federal police are responsible on airfield site. Denmark also plans to change laws in order to enable operators of critical infrastructures to shoot drones. Technical defensive measures, such as the use of interference, must also be considered, but must also be proportionate.

The impending danger from impending drone attacks makes it clear that it is necessary to check and adapt the legal framework for drone defense both in Denmark and in other European countries. The events in Denmark are in the context of increased Russian drone sightings that have increased since the Ukraine war and are targeted by military transport routes and NATO base.