15. December 2025
Eu Counter-Uas Crisis Escalates: Denmarks Drone Threat Sparks Intensive Military Response
Denmark’s Drone Airport Chaos Just Turbocharged Europe’s Counter-UAS Race
When multiple drones showed up over Danish airports and a key fighter base this fall, the Danish government realized it needed to invest in better counter-UAS measures. The next time this occurs, they may not be as lucky.
The incident acted as a real-world stress test for how well Europe’s current counter-UAS systems can actually protect critical airspace. Fast forward a few months, and we are already seeing the industry response. The Danish aerospace firm Terma has moved to acquire UK counter-drone and cUAS specialist OSL Technology, tightening Europe’s grip on airspace security at the exact moment the United States is tying itself in knots over a looming DJI apocalypse.
This one is worth looking at closely, because it shows how quickly a country needs to move once drones hit its headlines for all the wrong reasons. Terma SCANTER Sphera Counter-UAS radar
A week of “hybrid attacks” and a nationwide drone ban
In late September, unidentified drones forced Copenhagen Airport to halt operations for nearly four hours, with similar disruptions at Oslo Airport, and then at Danish airports in Aalborg and Billund. Flights were stopped, terminals backed up, and for a while nobody really knew who was in control of the airspace. The pattern did not stop at civilian hubs.
Danish officials reported drones over Fighter Wing Skrydstrup, home to much of the country’s F-16 and F-35 fleet, and described the activity as a coordinated “hybrid attack” by a capable actor rather than a random hobbyist. At that point, it turned into both an aviation safety problem and a national security one.
Copenhagen Airport Terminal 2, which was among the facilities affected by recent drone-related disruptions. Photo credit: Dornum72 / Wikimedia Commons
In response, Denmark did three things:
It raised its crisis preparedness to the highest level in years and invited additional NATO surveillance assets into the region.
It pushed for stronger legal authority so airports and security services could actually neutralize drones in protected airspace.
It went as far as ordering a five-day nationwide ban on civilian drones ahead of major EU meetings in Copenhagen, carving out only narrow exemptions for state and emergency operations.
Terma buys OSL and builds a counter-UAS heavyweight
At the end of November, Terma A/S announced it had completed the acquisition of UK-based OSL Technology, a company that has spent the last decade living inside the civil airspace problem set. OSL brings a full layered counter-UAS stack to the table:
Multi-sensor detection: Radio Frequency (RF) sensing, 360-degree and sector radar, and EO/IR cameras all fused together so operators are not guessing which dot matters or which “drone” is actually a bird.
AI at the edge: Their INSIGHT analytics platform adds object recognition and tracking to existing camera networks, which matters a lot when you’re trying to tell a DJI Mini or small FPV quad from a flock of gulls at night.
FACE command and control: A unifying C2 layer that pulls all those sensor feeds into one operational picture and drives automated workflows for alerts, investigation, and engagement when rogue drones enter restricted airspace.
On the other side of the deal, Terma is not a startup trying to prove itself. The company already supplies surveillance radar, mission systems, and command-and-control software to navies, air forces, and space customers across NATO. Their gear already sits in air defense networks that worry about cruise missiles and fighter jets, not just small UAS.
What this means for airports and critical infrastructure
Even if some of the Danish “sightings” turn out to be misidentified planes, or bright stars, the operational lesson is the same:
Airports, ports, refineries, power plants, and data centers are now in the crosshairs for drone attacks.
Shutting down a major airport for a few hours is an incredibly soft pressure point compared to the cost of a handful of off-the-shelf drones.
OSL has lived that reality from the airport side for years, quietly integrating counter-UAS detection systems into real-world sites that cannot afford to close every time someone thinks they see a quadcopter near the approach path.
Terma has lived it from the military side, where unidentified radar returns and drones near sensitive bases can escalate into diplomatic incidents in minutes. Putting those worlds together gives Denmark a homegrown, exportable counter-UAS solution that ticks a lot of boxes for NATO partners who suddenly care a lot more about drone defense than they did five years ago.
The Danish government’s response of imposing nationwide restrictions may have appeared a bit extreme, but I believe it’s exactly what was needed at that point in time to provide the Danish military a chance to get their act together. This instance reminds me of the New Jersey drone sightings back in late 2024.
Ask yourself – what steps should your country be taking if it were to be targeted next?
Brazen Drone Incursion Over US Nuke Base: Has NATO Already Lost the Drone War?
Three large drones conducted targeted surveillance over Belgium’s Kleine Brogel airbase—which stores US nuclear weapons—on the night of November 1-2, 2025, evading Belgian military jammers and police helicopter pursuit in what Defense Minister Theo Francken called “a clear command targeting Kleine Brogel.” The incident marks the latest escalation in a months-long campaign of drone incursions across NATO territory that has exposed critical vulnerabilities in European air defenses.
The brazen surveillance operation over one of Europe’s most sensitive military installations demonstrates that despite billions pledged for counter-drone systems, NATO still lacks effective capabilities to detect, track, and neutralize sophisticated unmanned aircraft.
Military Jammers Fail Against Sophisticated Drones
Belgian authorities detected three large drones flying at higher altitudes over Kleine Brogel Air Base in Limburg Province on Saturday night, according to Reuters. The base, located just 6 miles (10 kilometers) from the Netherlands border, is widely known to store American B61 nuclear gravity bombs under NATO’s nuclear sharing arrangements and will house Belgium’s new F-35A Lightning II fleet starting in 2027.
Defense Minister Theo Francken confirmed on Sunday that Belgian forces deployed electronic jamming equipment in an unsuccessful attempt to disable the drones. “A drone jammer was used, but without success,” Francken said in a statement on X (formerly Twitter), adding that the countermeasures may have failed due to “distance or radio frequency issues.”
A police helicopter and ground patrol units pursued one of the drones for several kilometers heading north toward the Netherlands before losing contact with the aircraft. No arrests have been made, and the operators remain unidentified.
Pattern of Repeated Intrusions Over Belgian Military Sites
The Saturday night incident followed drone sightings at the same airbase just 24 hours earlier on October 31, when authorities also failed to intercept the unmanned aircraft. Belgian media outlet VTM Nieuws reported that drones were also observed over the nearby Leopoldsburg military area on the same night, approximately 12 miles (20 kilometers) from Kleine Brogel.
“This was not a simple overflight, but a clear command targeting Kleine Brogel,” Francken stated. “Last night, three reports were made about the appearance of larger drones flying at high altitude over Kleine Brogel.”
The Belgian Defense Minister characterized the incidents as probable espionage operations rather than accidental overflights.
“How they operate exactly, where they hover, what they examine and how long such a flight lasts: these are not accidents,” he told Belgian broadcaster VRT.
Belgium has experienced an escalating series of drone incursions at military facilities in recent months. Investigations are already underway into multiple sightings over the Marche-en-Famenne military base in southeastern Belgium and another facility at Elsenborn on the German border last month. Additional drone activity was reported at Deurne Airport and Ostend Airport in recent nights.
Belgium Proposes €500 Million Counter-Drone Defense Plan
Francken announced that his department will present a €50 million ($54 million USD) emergency counter-drone package to the Belgian Cabinet on Friday, with plans for a comprehensive €500 million ($543 million USD) long-term investment program. The immediate funding would cover standardized drone reporting systems, additional anti-drone equipment, and enhanced detection capabilities.
“This involves a standardised way of reporting a drone, but also the purchase of anti-drone systems and a whole range of detection systems,” Francken told VRT radio, adding that “the first effects of the drone plan should already be felt this month.”
Belgian government ministers are scheduled to discuss the incidents and response measures on Tuesday, November 5. Francken said he would meet with local police and Peer Mayor Steven Matheï next week to “analyze the threat and take the necessary steps to find and arrest the drone pilots.”