Once again drones have been spotted flying above the Kleine Brogel Airbase in Limburg Province. In what was the latest of a series of such incidents, drones were seen flying above the airbase on Sunday evening. The news first appeared in the daily ‘Het Laatste Nieuws’ and has since been confirmed by the mayor of Peer, the municipality that includes Kleine Brogel, Steven Steven Matheï (Christian democrat). The police were alerted to the drones’ presence.
Elsewhere, drones were also spotted flying above the Leopoldsburg (Limburg Province) and Marche-en-Famenne (Luxembourg Province) military bases during the weekend. There were also reports of drones flying close to the airports at Ostend (West Flanders) and Deurne (Antwerp).
At Kleine Brogel, as was the case on Saturday, police used a helicopter and police cars in an effort to follow the drones. However, Mayor Matheï says that on both Saturday and Sunday the drones flew away towards the Netherlands after which they disappeared.
Sunday evening was the third consecutive evening that drones had been spotted above Kleine Brogel. During the weekend drones were also spotted flying above the Leopoldsburg and Marche-en-Famenne military bases and the airports at Ostend and Deurne.
It’s not clear who is behind it
Up until now none of the drones have been intercepted. It is as yet unclear where the drones come from and who is flying them.
The Belgian Defence Minister Theo Francken (Flemish nationalist) said on Sunday that he is taking the incidents seriously. Mr Francken said that "If you look how the drones are flying and where specifically they are flying and how long they circle above critical infrastructure, it is clear that this is not accidental”.