Belgium’s week-long battle with unidentified drones escalated on Sunday, 9 November, when Britain agreed to fly in specialist personnel and counter-drone hardware at the request of the Belgian armed forces. The head of the UK military, Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton, told the BBC that technicians and electronic-warfare equipment were already en-route to Brussels to reinforce local security teams.
Drones have repeatedly penetrated restricted airspace over Brussels and Liège airports since 4 November, forcing the diversion or grounding of dozens of commercial flights and stranding hundreds of travellers overnight. The incidents also coincided with drone activity above the Kleine-Brogel air base that houses U.S. nuclear weapons, prompting Belgium’s National Security Council to meet in emergency session on 6 November.
![UK Deploys Anti-Drone Team to Belgium After Airport Shutdowns]()
Although no group has claimed responsibility, Defence Minister Theo Francken has publicly linked the pattern of incursions to ‘hybrid’ pressure tactics allegedly employed by Russia as Brussels debates whether to use frozen Russian assets held at Belgian clearer Euroclear to fund loans for Ukraine. Moscow has denied involvement.
Practically, the deployments mean travelling executives should expect an enhanced security presence and potential spot checks at Belgium’s two largest airports, while airlines revise flight schedules to create buffer time for short-notice closures. Companies moving staff or high-value freight through Brussels Airport have been advised by Eurocontrol to file flexible flight plans and to consider routing sensitive cargo via Amsterdam or Paris until the threat picture stabilises.
For mobility managers, the episode underscores the growing intersection between geopolitics and business travel risk. Organisations are urged to refresh employee tracking protocols and ensure travellers carry Schengen-compliant identification in case of diversions to neighbouring countries.
Drones have repeatedly penetrated restricted airspace over Brussels and Liège airports since 4 November, forcing the diversion or grounding of dozens of commercial flights and stranding hundreds of travellers overnight. The incidents also coincided with drone activity above the Kleine-Brogel air base that houses U.S. nuclear weapons, prompting Belgium’s National Security Council to meet in emergency session on 6 November.
Although no group has claimed responsibility, Defence Minister Theo Francken has publicly linked the pattern of incursions to ‘hybrid’ pressure tactics allegedly employed by Russia as Brussels debates whether to use frozen Russian assets held at Belgian clearer Euroclear to fund loans for Ukraine. Moscow has denied involvement.
Practically, the deployments mean travelling executives should expect an enhanced security presence and potential spot checks at Belgium’s two largest airports, while airlines revise flight schedules to create buffer time for short-notice closures. Companies moving staff or high-value freight through Brussels Airport have been advised by Eurocontrol to file flexible flight plans and to consider routing sensitive cargo via Amsterdam or Paris until the threat picture stabilises.
For mobility managers, the episode underscores the growing intersection between geopolitics and business travel risk. Organisations are urged to refresh employee tracking protocols and ensure travellers carry Schengen-compliant identification in case of diversions to neighbouring countries.
