Dutch soldiers on manoeuvres in NATO exercises in Poland had their communication systems disrupted by drones of unidentified origin just moments after they spotted cars with Belarusian licence plates when setting up camp.
The soldiers from the Netherlands who are a part of a contingent of 1,800 troops in Poland were taking part in NATO’s Falcon Autumn exercise, which began on October 5. It is a large-scale air exercise involving troops from several allied countries, including Poland and the US, practising countering Russian adversaries.
Soldiers from the 11th Airmobile Brigade, a unit training to be able to react to any enemy attack within 10 days of conflict breaking out, had set up camp at a disused airfield on October 13 and, shortly after, a swarm of unidentified drones appeared.
In a statement to Dutch public broadcaster NOS, the Dutch defence ministry confirmed the incident and said that it had coincided with communication disruptions among troops.
According to the unit’s Brigadier General Frank Grandia, “there was no immediate threat” and he explained the incident away as a curiosity that was to be expected in current circumstances.
“We know there are parties who are extremely interested in what we’re doing and are monitoring the exercises,” he said, adding that his soldiers had “learned from the incident to adapt immediately to changing circumstances”.
During the exercises, the troops initially lacked systems to counter drones but those were flown in from the Netherlands shortly after the incident.
According to Dutch news outlet AD, the drones also hindered the pilots of seven Apache and eight Chinook helicopters involved in the training exercise. Commodore Pier Schipmölder said “by taking alternative routes, the operations were still able to proceed safely.”
Apart from ground troops, the Netherlands is currently helping to strengthen Poland’s defences with F-35 fighter jets, one of which was scrambled during an incursion by 20 Russian drones into Polish airspace in September that ended in NATO fighter planes shooting down some drones.
The Dutch were among several NATO allies that quickly pledged to further boost air defences in eastern Poland.
Several more instances of NATO airspace violations and suspicious drone activity have been reported, including in Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Norway, Romania and the Netherlands where it led to a temporary shutdown off Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport.
Russia has been dismissing these incidents as accidental, as with the case of more than 20 of its drones crossing into Polish airspace or by denying involvement altogether.
