Unidentified drones spied on F-16s and ammunition at Belgian airbase – defense minister

In Belgium, on October 31, two nights in a row, unknown drones were spotted over the Kleine Brogel military airbase – the country's defense minister Theo Francken believes that the UAVs were engaged in espionage. The official told about this in an interview with Belgian media outlet RTBF.

"We tried to jam the signal with electronic means, tried to shoot down the drone. It was ineffective," the official said.

According to him, the police followed the drone with a helicopter and two cars: "But at some point, I think after 20 kilometers, they lost the signal."

Until now, Francken added, Belgium has used jamming to jam the drones' signals or tried to shoot them down, but without success: "They [the UAVs] were at a very high altitude, almost 200 meters, so it's not easy to shoot them down."

He said that an investigation is currently underway by Belgian military intelligence, and the Ministry is awaiting its results.

However, the official believes that the most likely version is that of surveillance: "They [the drones] come to spy, to see where the F-16s are, where the ammunition is stored, and other strategically important things."

In his opinion, these drones were intended to attack the facility, and the UAVs were spying both in Kleine Brogel and earlier in the Marsh-en-Famen military camp in late October.

As for who might be behind these drones, Franken mentioned Russia, which is waging a "hybrid war."

"The Russians are trying to do this in all European countries. Is it the Russians now? I can't say, but the motives are obvious, and the methods of such actions are also very clear," he explained.

Kleine Brogel, owned by the Belgian Air Force, is home to F-16 squadrons, and later new F-35s will be based there.

It is one of five military bases used by the United States in Europe: the US Air Force stores ammunition there, making it the most important facility in Belgium and one of the most important on the continent.

In 2019, a report by the NATO Parliamentary Assembly confirmed that the United States had deployed about 150 nuclear warheads at six American and European bases, including Kleine Brogel, RTBF notes.

• On October 3, over the Elsenborn military base in Belgium, located near the German border, 15 drones were spotted.
• On October 31, Berlin Brandenburg International Airport suspended operations after an unknown drone was spotted near the airport.