Morning opening: Munich drone sightings add urgency to discussions on EU drone wall
Jakub Krupa
Munich has joined a growing list of European airport disrupted by drone sightings in recent weeks, with 17 flights cancelled, 15 diverted elsewhere, and thousands of passengers facing disruption to their travel overnight.
Several people reported seeing drones near the airport, with a further sighting later confirmed within the restricted zone, forcing air traffic control to suspend operations pending investigation.
It remains unclear how many, or of what type, drones were involved.
The disruption comes just before the closing weekend of the Oktoberfest beer festival, which had already seen disruption earlier this week due to a bomb threat in the city.
Deutsche Flugsicherung GmbH, the German air navigation service provider responsible for the German airspace, said last week that drone sightings near airports are on the up, with 144 reported so far in 2025, compared with 113 in 2024, and 99 in 2023, Süddeutsche Zeitung reported.
Expect the sightings and the associated disruption to reignite the debate about Europe’s air defences, just after the EU leaders’ meeting in Copenhagen revealed some disagreements – mostly along the geographical lines – about the newly proposed “drone wall” project.
I will bring you all reactions here.
It’s Friday, 3 October 2025, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
Key events
Germany marks 35th anniversary of reunification
The Munich drone sightings come at a special time for Germany, which marks the German Unity Day, the 35th anniversary of the reunification in 1990, today.
Here is how the Guardian reported the news 35 years ago:
“Germany, an economic and political colossus in the heart of Europe, was reborn today on the stroke of midnight as a single country after more than 45 years of division.
More than a million people witnessed the historic end of two separate German states as the Federal Republic’s black, red and gold flag, complete with rampant eagle, was brought in by 20 young people from both parts of Berlin and raised on a special flagstaff in front of the Reichstag, dedicated To The German People.
The Liberty Bell pealed throughout Berlin and President Richard von Weizsäcker proclaimed: “In free self-determination we have completed the unity and freedom of Germany. We want to serve world peace in a united Europe.”
Fireworks soared over the nearby Brandenburg Gate, until recently split from the West by the now demolished Berlin Wall, and lit up the sky in cities across the new country of 77 million people.
In an earlier ceremony, tinged with some sadness, the postwar division of Europe finally came to an end as the East German flag, with its old communist insignia, was lowered for the last time and the state formed in 1949 passed into oblivion to the sound of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and rock music all along Unter Den Linden.”
French president Emmanuel Macron will be the guest of honour today (a choice that was not very popular with former chancellor, Angela Merkel, as it turns out) at the main event set to start later today in Saarbrücken.
I will keep an eye on the celebrations there as we are likely to hear from him and the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz.
CDU/CSU parliamentary leader calls for ‘immediate’ work on drone defence system
Jens Spahn, leader of the ruling CDU/CSU party’s parliamentary grouping in the Bundestag, said the incident highlighted the need for “an integrated and agile” system that would allow to neutralise drones “immediately.”
“We must establish a functioning drone defence system as quickly as possible,” he told local Bavarian media.
Morning opening: Munich drone sightings add urgency to discussions on EU drone wall
Jakub Krupa
Munich has joined a growing list of European airport disrupted by drone sightings in recent weeks, with 17 flights cancelled, 15 diverted elsewhere, and thousands of passengers facing disruption to their travel overnight.
Several people reported seeing drones near the airport, with a further sighting later confirmed within the restricted zone, forcing air traffic control to suspend operations pending investigation.
It remains unclear how many, or of what type, drones were involved.
The disruption comes just before the closing weekend of the Oktoberfest beer festival, which had already seen disruption earlier this week due to a bomb threat in the city.
Deutsche Flugsicherung GmbH, the German air navigation service provider responsible for the German airspace, said last week that drone sightings near airports are on the up, with 144 reported so far in 2025, compared with 113 in 2024, and 99 in 2023, Süddeutsche Zeitung reported.
Expect the sightings and the associated disruption to reignite the debate about Europe’s air defences, just after the EU leaders’ meeting in Copenhagen revealed some disagreements – mostly along the geographical lines – about the newly proposed “drone wall” project.
I will bring you all reactions here.
It’s Friday, 3 October 2025, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
