Search underway at Leipzig airport for debris from another drone that collided with cargo aircraft
Armin Schuster, Interior Minister of the German state of Saxony, has said that a search is underway at Leipzig airport for debris from a possible second drone that collided with a cargo aircraft.
Source: German TV news channel n-tv, as reported by European Pravda
Details: A drone fitted with an explosive device was found on the southern runway on the night of 4-5 August. Sources in the security services told n-tv that it was located near a Ukrainian An-124 Kondor transport aircraft.
A second, apparently unidentified, flying object collided with the cargo aircraft after it aborted its landing due to the runway's closure.
According to reports, minor damage was found on the cargo aircraft after it landed in Hanover. Schuster said the search for debris from a possible second drone continues.
A representative of Saxony's State Criminal Police Office said the search for the second unidentified object was set to resume on the morning of 6 August.
German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said the explosive-laden drone at Leipzig airport represents "a new level of danger" for the country and is being treated as "a professional hybrid threat scenario".
Background:
- Media outlets reported earlier that a drone equipped with explosives and a detonator was discovered near a Ukrainian aircraft at a German airport on the night of 4-5 August. Die Zeit reported that the aircraft was an Antonov cargo plane, believed to belong to Ukraine's Air Force.
- NATO told European Pravda that it had been informed about the incident.
- German police deployed a bomb disposal robot to recover the drone.
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