In an emergency, the German Armed Forces should be able to shoot down illegally flying drones. This is the aim of a new Aviation Security Act (LuftSiG).
In mid-January, the Federal Cabinet approved proposed regulations for an amendment to the Aviation Security Act. This would give the German Armed Forces the authority to fend off illegally flying drones in the event of a particularly serious accident.
The prerequisite for this is that the police of the federal states, who are generally responsible for averting danger, are not technically capable of doing so and request appropriate support. The bill is to be introduced into the German Bundestag by the government factions.
Drones can endanger critical infrastructure
The background to the proposal is the constantly evolving threat posed by “uncooperative” drones: The security authorities are noticing that sightings over critical infrastructure and military properties in Germany are on the rise. This can always involve espionage or sabotage. At the same time, the rapid pace of technological development is presenting police authorities with ever-greater challenges. This applies in particular to models with sophisticated flight characteristics whose performance far exceeds that of commercially available drones.
“Drones as an instrument for espionage and sabotage can pose a serious threat, especially to our critical infrastructure,” emphasises Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser. The police authorities are constantly developing their ability to detect and defend against drones. “Nevertheless, especially since Putin’s war of aggression against Ukraine, we have seen that drones are being used more and more frequently, posing an increasing challenge for the police and their current technology.”
LuftSiG: ultimately the authority to shoot them down
It is therefore necessary to create the authority in the LuftSiG to allow the German Armed Forces to intervene in the event of serious threats – also to shoot down illegally flying drones as a last resort. “This increases the protection of our critical infrastructure. And it shows: We will not be intimidated and are taking a decisive stance against the current threats,” said Faeser.
The project is intended to expand the possible deployment measures of the German Armed Forces to support the federal states: When preventing the occurrence of a particularly serious accident in Section 14 (1) of the LuftsiG, the direct intervention of the armed forces with armed force against illegal drones is to become possible. The prerequisite is that it can be assumed from the circumstances that an unmanned aerial vehicle is to be used against the lives of people or against a critical facility and the use of armed force is the only means of averting this current danger.
Considerable efforts required
The federal and state security authorities are in constant and very close contact with one another in order to continuously develop the capabilities for detecting and defending against drones. The Federal Ministry of the Interior and Home Affairs plays a coordinating role in this. Considerable personnel and budgetary efforts are required to counter the threat posed by drones in the long term. This affects the federal and state governments, security authorities and the military, as well as civilian authorities and operators of critical infrastructure.
The Federal Government also presented the reform of the Federal Police Act in December 2023. This draft law also contains a special authorisation standard for drone defence by the federal police using state-of-the-art technical means (for example, electromagnetic impulses, interference with radio links or physical impact on drones). The bill is currently in the parliamentary process.
