Germany’s interior ministry is putting mobile drone-defence technology in place at the country’s major airports by the end of the year, with Cologne/Bonn among the first eight priority sites. The move follows the drone incident at Leipzig/Halle earlier this month and forms part of a wider tightening of airport-security procedures across Germany.
Interim drone-detection equipment is already being rolled out by the German air navigation authority in arrival and departure areas, giving airports faster warning of incursions near runways and taxiways. German officials are also expanding the federal police drone-defence unit and weighing military support in severe cases.
For Cologne/Bonn, the upgrade places one of Germany’s busiest airports inside a nationwide counter-drone push after a series of disruptions highlighted the vulnerability of air traffic to unmanned aircraft. The available verified reporting supports the broader security response and the Cologne/Bonn runway procedures, while the specific claim of a Ryanair 737 meeting a military drone has not been confirmed in the reliable material reviewed.