Belgian Armed Forces ordered to shoot down drones over military bases
The Belgian Armed Forces have been instructed to shoot down any unidentified drones spotted over military airbases.
Source: Chief of the Belgian General Staff Frédéric Vansina, cited by Belga News Agency, as reported by European Pravda
Details: Vansina said that Belgium's drone defence programme is being implemented at an accelerated pace and that the relevant plan will soon be presented to the government.
At present, Belgium's resources to counter unidentified UAVs – including detection systems, jamming devices and anti-drone rifles – remain limited.
Vansina stated that if more drones appear over military bases, the military will shoot them down.
"The order has been given to shoot them down," he said on 3 November during a ceremony for the arrival of a new minehunter in Zeebrugge.
He added that drones may only be taken down if it can be done safely and "without causing collateral damage".
The commander explained that this is difficult, given that drones often fly at night, are small in size and highly manoeuvrable.
Background:
- A few days ago, Belgium launched an investigation into the appearance of several drones over a military base in the southern part of the country.
- More suspicious drones were spotted later over the Kleine-Brogel military base in the east of the country.
- Belgian Defence Minister Theo Francken previously stated that the drones were likely used to locate F-16 fighter jets and gather other strategically important information.
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