Threat raised to ‘new level’ as drone with explosive found in cargo area at German airport

An explosive-bearing drone found this week at an airport in eastern Germany is intensifying concerns about Russia’s suspected hybrid war against Europe.

The drone was found in the secure cargo operations area at Leipzig/Halle Airport around midnight Wednesday near a Ukrainian An-124 Ruslan cargo plane, according to authorities.  

The drone apparently failed to explode at its intended target because of a faulty detonator, according to multiple German media outlets. Police removed the detonator and disabled the explosives.

Ukrainian carrier Antonov Airlines, which operates the plane, has used the airport as an operating base following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The German military and NATO allies also use the airport for logistics operations.  

The incident represents “a new level of threat” for Germany and Europe, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt told reporters Wednesday. 

Dobrindt did not identify a suspect, but during a Wednesday interview with German news program Tagesthemen, he said state actors could be involved.  

“It certainly cannot be ruled out,” he said 

Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials directly blamed Russia. 

“Who else could it be but Russia?” Ukraine’s ambassador to Germany, Oleksii Makeiev, told German broadcaster Welt TV on Wednesday.  

In a separate incident early Wednesday morning, A DHL cargo plane collided with an unidentified object over the Leipzig airport and diverted to landing in Hanover with minor damage.  

Russia is widely suspected of being behind a spate of previous acts of sabotage in European countries. In July 2024, fires broke out at the Leipzig airport and at a warehouse in England when incendiary devices destined for North America ignited.

A month earlier, Polish authorities arrested several suspects linked to an alleged sabotage operation on behalf of an unspecified foreign intelligence service.

NATO countries across Europe are also dealing with a long-running campaign of airspace incursions by suspected Russian drones and other aircraft.  

Between August 2024 and February 2026, hundreds of Russian drones maneuvered through the airspace of a dozen NATO member states, including near Ramstein Air Base in Germany and facilities related to NATO’s nuclear deterrence mission. 

In late July, a Romanian fighter jet shot down a suspected Russian drone after three consecutive days of airspace incursions. 

Russia has denied responsibility for the incidents.