Unidentified drones spark security alert at French military base

Published on 26/09/2025 - 11:55 GMT+2

Unidentified drones flew implicit France's Mourmelon-le-Grand subject basal overnight connected Monday, triggering accrued information measures astatine the installation that houses the 501st vessel regiment and has trained Ukrainian soldiers, home media reported.

Military officials told French outlets that tiny craft spotted implicit the Marne section basal were "not drones piloted by subject personnel," according to the departmental subject delegation. Regional paper L'Union was the archetypal to study the incident.

The basal instantly accrued information arrangements pursuing the unauthorised overflights. Mourmelon-le-Grand has hosted Ukrainian soldiers undergoing grooming arsenic portion of the Champagne task unit passim 2024.

French instrumentality strictly prohibits civilian drones from flying implicit subject installations, with unauthorised flights implicit delicate sites considered threats to nationalist information punishable by dense fines oregon imprisonment.

The incidental is yet different successful a increasing signifier of unauthorised drone incursions crossed Europe implicit the past month. Several European countries person reported UAVs operated by chartless individuals flown implicit delicate civilian and subject sites successful Scandinavia, Poland and the Baltic states.

These intrusions person led to impermanent airdrome closures, formation cancellations and accrued aerial patrols crossed the affected regions. NATO officials fishy Russia whitethorn beryllium down the disruptions, with respective countries designating them arsenic "hybrid attack" operations designed to trial European defence responsiveness.

The French subject has not disclosed details astir the drones' origin, formation patterns oregon duration of the incursion astatine Mourmelon-le-Grand. Authorities are continuing to analyse the information breach, according to reports.

European defence officials are coordinating responses to what appears to beryllium a coordinated run of drone surveillance targeting captious infrastructure and subject installations crossed the continent, with a gathering of EU subordinate states implicit a projected "drone wall" acceptable for Friday.