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The report added that weapons were deployed by the Dutch administration to shoot them down but the devices were able to escape the area. (Representational/ File Photo) In a series of incidents where drones have been spotted in Europe, the sightings in the south of Netherlands led to air traffic suspension at the Eindhoven airport for several hours on Saturday, Dutch defence minister Ruben Brekelmans confirmed in a post on X, Reuters reported.
According to a BBC report, drones were first sighted on Friday near Volkel air force base in the Netherlands. The report added that weapons were deployed by the Dutch administration to shoot them down but the devices were able to escape the area before being targeted.
After several more drones were spotted near the area on Saturday, the air traffic was suspended by the authorities at the Eindhoven airport for both civilian and military flights. Netherlands Defence Minister Ruben Brekelmans said “counter-drone assets” were ready to be deployed.
Er zijn meerdere drones gesignaleerd bij luchthaven Eindhoven.
— Ruben Brekelmans (@DefensieMin) November 22, 2025
Het civiele en militaire vliegverkeer is daarom opgeschort. Counter-drone middelen van Defensie staan paraat om in te grijpen. Ook politie en KMar zijn ter plaatse.
Nader onderzoek loopt en waar nodig treden we op.
“Defense’s counter-drone resources are on standby to intervene. Police and KMar are also on site. Further investigation is ongoing and we will take action where necessary,” Brekelmans said in a post on X.
It is the latest in the series of drone sightings at military installations and airports in northern Europe in a few months. The European countries have alleged that Russia is behind these incidents but Moscow has denied accusations that it was anyway involved in the act.
The defence ministry, while keeping silent on the question of origin of the drones, said the military deployed weapons against the drones sighted near the airport which is used as civilian and military both. The drones were spotted hovering above the air force base in Volkel, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) northeast of Eindhoven, Reuters reported.
For the past few months, drones have been sighted at other locations in the Netherlands, and at several facilities in neighbouring Belgium, Denmark and Germany. Traffic resumed at the Eindhoven airport around 11pm (local times).
(with inputs from Reuters)
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