German police deployed a bomb disposal robot at an airport overnight after a drone was found on the tarmac near a Ukrainian cargo plane, sparking alarm and forcing the diversion of numerous flights. One aircraft that had to abort its scheduled landing at Leipzig-Halle airport then collided mid-air with an unknown object nearby but later landed safely elsewhere, the government said. Bild daily reported that the drone found on the tarmac of the eastern airport carried explosives and a detonator -- but police did not confirm this report to AFP, saying the investigation was ongoing. The airport in eastern Germany plays a key role in the transport of military goods, including by the German military and NATO allies, and also serves as a base for Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines. Video footage from a local news agency showed the bomb disposal robot near an Antonov plane painted with the Ukrainian colours yellow and blue and with the words “Be Brave Like Kherson” written on the side, a reference to a Ukrainian region battered by Russian strikes. Bild also reported that the plane that collided with an unknown object mid-air was a DHL cargo aircraft that was hit about six kilometres (four miles) away, sustaining minor damage on the nose that was discovered when it later landed safely at Hanover airport. German police first reported on Wednesday morning that a “security-related incident” had temporarily halted flights to the airport. “Shortly before midnight, an unidentified flying object was sighted near Leipzig-Halle Airport, prompting the diversion of several aircraft -- including a passenger plane -- to other airports”, they said. A passenger plane from Mallorca as well as several cargo planes heading there had to be sent to other locations. “In addition, an object was detected near the southern runway, which was initially examined by the federal police, a process that involved the deployment of an explosives disposal robot,” police said, without saying whether it was detonated. Regular traffic at the airport resumed in the early hours of Wednesday but only on the northern runway, while investigators looked for clues on the southern runway. - Series of drone sightings - An interior ministry spokesman later said: “I can confirm that the drone was found at Leipzig-Halle Airport. Beyond that, I unfortunately cannot say anything at the moment.” Regarding the mid-air incident, he said that a plane “was meant to land in Leipzig but then had to abort the landing”. “It then collided with an object,” he said, adding that it landed safely but declining to provide further information. Germany and other European countries have repeatedly observed drones flying over sensitive sites such as airports, military bases and industrial plants. Authorities in Germany, one of Ukraine’s biggest military supporters, have said they suspect Russia of orchestrating many of the incidents as part of a campaign of sabotage, espionage and disinformation. In July 2024 a parcel burst into flames on the ground at Leipzig airport before it could be loaded onto a DHL cargo plane, part of what security services treated as a suspected Moscow-linked arson sabotage plot. Russia has denied being behind any such incidents. Last year a Chinese national was convicted for passing on information about flight schedules and cargo movements at Leipzig-Halle airport to a man spying for Beijing. By Jastinder Khera
