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German investigators have found suspected explosive material near a drone that crashed close to a key military air base, according to reports by German public broadcasters NDR and WDR.
The wreckage was discovered about 1 kilometre from Wunstorf Air Base in Lower Saxony, which is home to the German armed forces’ fleet of A400M military transport aircraft. A farmer alerted police about a week earlier after finding the drone broken into pieces in dense undergrowth.
Investigators examine possible explosives
The Federal Prosecutor’s Office and the Federal Criminal Police Office, known as the BKA, have taken over the investigation.
Security sources cited by NDR, WDR and the Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper said the drone may have been carrying explosives. Suspicious material was found several metres from the wreckage, although forensic testing has not yet been completed.
According to the reports, the drone appeared similar in design to devices used in an attempted attack at Leipzig Airport last month. At least one of its components was made with a 3D printer, suggesting it was not a standard commercial model.
Earlier incident at Leipzig Airport
The Leipzig incident in early August involved homemade drones that investigators said were intended to destroy Ukrainian cargo aircraft.
On September 1, the German government said Russia was behind the attempted attack and announced measures including the closure of the Russian consulate general in Bonn and a cultural centre in Berlin.
Russia’s ambassador to Germany, Sergey Nechayev, rejected the accusation as unproven and absurd. In a statement following Berlin’s announcement, he described it as a fabricated provocation intended to serve Kyiv and Europe’s “militarist wing”, and said Germany’s measures represented a sharp escalation that would not go unanswered.
