Serious incidents with shootings to drones at a base housing F-35 fighters and nuclear bombs

Drone incursions of unknown origin are becoming an increasing problem for several NATO member countries.

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So far, there have been several incidents involving drone flights at European civilian airports, forcing the temporary closure of all operations at some of them. There have also been incidents at some military bases. A year ago, there was an alert about the presence of swarms of up to 20 drones at a time near the British air bases of RAF Lakenheath, RAF Mildenhall, RAF Feltwell, and RAF Fairford. These sightings occurred between November 20 and 22, 2024. The origin of these drones remains a mystery. Spy drones were detected a few weeks ago over the Kleine-Brogel air base in Belgium, which houses F-16 fighters.

The worst incident so far occurred last Friday in the Netherlands, as weapons had not been used to repel the incursion until now. Yesterday, the Dutch Ministry of Defense issued a statement indicating the following: "On Friday and Saturday nights, several drones flew over Volkel Air Base".

The statement adds: "Air Force personnel used weapons from the ground, after which the drones left. On Saturday night, civil and military air traffic at Eindhoven Airport was halted for several hours after drones were sighted in the area. The Ministry of Defense also took action in that case."

Thus, we are talking about three drone incursions, two of them on a military base, which were repelled with weaponry. Until now, this level of intervention had not been reached, making this a turning point in these incursions. The statement adds that the Royal Military Police and the Dutch Police "are conducting a more detailed investigation. At the moment, it is unclear why the drones were flying over and around the air bases. For security reasons, the Ministry of Defence has not provided further information on how the drones were detected or on the means used to intervene."

The Dutch Ministry of Defence has stated: "Flying drones in the vicinity of airports is strictly prohibited. This creates unsafe (air) situations. Therefore, the Ministry of Defence will take action. For operational and security reasons, the Ministry of Defence will not make any statements regarding the type of intervention or the means that will be used."

One of the most alarming aspects of these serious incidents last weekend is that Volkel Air Base is home to two Royal Netherlands Air Force (KLu) F-35A Lightning II stealth fighter squadrons, specifically Squadrons 312 Strike and 313 Tiger. The KLu has a third F-35A squadron at Leeuwarden Air Base. The F-35 is an advanced fifth-generation fighter that plays a vital role in NATO.

In addition, and although the Dutch government remains completely silent on the matter, Volkel is one of the European bases where the US stores B-61 nuclear bombs. Their storage and maintenance are the responsibility of the 703rd Munitions Support Squadron (703 MUNSS) of the United States Air Force (USAF).

It doesn't take much imagination to figure out who might be interested in spying on such a base using drones. For months now, reports of Russian drone operations have been surfacing in several European countries.

What is most worrying is seeing these incidents repeated across Europe without a single drone being shot down. Civilian airports are infrastructure that should have special surveillance against these types of incursions. Military bases like Volkel should have even greater surveillance. Knowing that drones of unknown origin are entering and leaving a base like that is anything but reassuring.

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Photos: Defensie.nl / Air Force Materiel Command.