In a sign that smugglers are turning to the skies, officers from the Szudziałowo Border Guard station intercepted an unmanned quad-copter ferrying 400 packs of Belarus-stamped cigarettes into Podlaskie on 5 November. The consumer-grade drone was spotted at dawn by a local resident, then jammed and recovered by a multi-agency team that included police and firefighters.
The seizure is the 18th drone-based smuggling attempt logged this year and follows 118 incidents in which traffickers used meteorological balloons to float tobacco and narcotics over the 5.5-metre border wall. Polish customs estimate the retail value of tobacco captured in air drops since January at PLN 3.4 million (€780,000).
![Border Guard downs contraband drone loaded with Belarusian cigarettes]()
While the haul is modest, the trend worries officials because low-altitude drones can also move forged passports, SIM cards or surveillance devices. Warsaw has already extended a 30-km no-fly zone for recreational drones along parts of the eastern frontier and is testing AI-enabled radar to detect aircraft with a radar cross-section below 0.01 m².
Companies shipping high-value goods through Białystok airport or using drones for surveying near the border must now request flight plans 48 hours in advance and install remote-ID beacons. Failure to comply carries fines of up to PLN 25,000 under the amended Aviation Law.
The seizure is the 18th drone-based smuggling attempt logged this year and follows 118 incidents in which traffickers used meteorological balloons to float tobacco and narcotics over the 5.5-metre border wall. Polish customs estimate the retail value of tobacco captured in air drops since January at PLN 3.4 million (€780,000).
While the haul is modest, the trend worries officials because low-altitude drones can also move forged passports, SIM cards or surveillance devices. Warsaw has already extended a 30-km no-fly zone for recreational drones along parts of the eastern frontier and is testing AI-enabled radar to detect aircraft with a radar cross-section below 0.01 m².
Companies shipping high-value goods through Białystok airport or using drones for surveying near the border must now request flight plans 48 hours in advance and install remote-ID beacons. Failure to comply carries fines of up to PLN 25,000 under the amended Aviation Law.
