Belgium’s Defence Minister, Theo Francken, said drones spotted above the Kleine-Brogel air base in Limburg at the weekend may have been used for espionage purposes. The Belga News Agency says it is a public secret that American nuclear weapons are stored at Kleine-Brogel and that F-35s will be stationed at the base from 2027 onwards.
The news agency added that drones have also been observed above Deurne airport and the Ostend airport grounds in recent nights.
“When suspicious drones were detected above the Kleine-Brogel air base on Saturday night, a police helicopter gave chase,” the news agency said. “Attempts were also made to bring down the drones by jamming their signal. These attempts were however unsuccessful.”
The article quotes Francken on the incidents at Kleine-Brogel that occurred on Friday, Saturday and Sunday night: “How they operate exactly, where they hover, what they investigate and how long such a flight lasts: these are not accidents.”
On October 30, Francken announced a EUR 50 million investment for drone defence, which he hopes to get approved by Belgium’s Council of Ministers later this week. The plan involves introducing a standardised way of reporting a drone or locating pilots as well as the purchase of counter-drone and detection systems.
For more information
Image: Jessica Johnson / Pixabay
The Unmanned Airspace 2025 Global Counter-UAS Systems Directory is the world’s only comprehensive, updated directory of global C-UAS companies and systems. It itemises over 1,000 C-UAS products and services with performance details, company sales and partnerships arrangements. It is updated every month and broken down into niche sub-sectors (net-capture, missiles, intercept drones, detectors etc) to give C-UAS procurement and industry personnel a unique perspective of global C-UAS technical capabilities and market positions. It is available in word, PDF and excel formats and Unmanned Airspace readers are eligible for a range of discounts. For more information about the Directory please contact the editor Philip Butterworth-Hayes at philip@unmannedairspace.info.
