An explosive drone was discovered near a Ukrainian cargo aircraft at Leipzig/Halle Airport in Germany during the night on Wednesday. An airport employee found the device, and Thomas Röwekamp stated that a major damage event was only prevented due to the chance and prudence of a bus driver.
The German Federal Prosecutor's Office in Karlsruhe has taken over the investigation from the General Prosecutor's Office in Dresden, citing the special significance of the case. The investigation is examining suspected attempted explosive explosion and dangerous interference with air traffic.
Demands for centralized authority
Thomas Röwekamp, the CDU chairman of the Defense Committee in the German Bundestag, called for the centralization of drone defense responsibility under the German Federal Ministry of the Interior or the German Federal Police. Röwekamp stated that current findings confirm the urgency of finding new responses to the threat drones pose to civilian infrastructure.
We need a central responsibility instead of a multitude of federal aviation security authorities.
Currently, the German Federal Police is responsible for drone defense at airports. While the Joint Drone Defense Center (GDAZ) was established by federal and state governments at the end of last year to be involved in drone defense, Röwekamp suggested the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) should intervene if other institutions are technically overwhelmed.
