Officials disclosed to WELT, part of the Axel Springer group like POLITICO, that the drone’s detonator failed, averting an explosion. The drone was discovered near a Ukrainian Antonov transport aircraft and contained Semtex, the same explosive used in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, which killed 259 people on board and 11 on the ground.
Leipzig airport serves as a base for NATO’s Strategic Airlift International Solution (SALIS), which allows participating nations to use Antonov cargo planes for military transport. It is also DHL’s largest European air hub and an aircraft maintenance base for Ukrainian Antonov aircraft.
WELT reported that security authorities have labeled the incident as an attempted attack, with no suspects in detention as of Wednesday evening.
Germany’s Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt interrupted his vacation in Italy to meet with officials in Leipzig.
Saxony’s Interior Minister Armin Schuster called the incident a “very serious security incident” in a statement.
Ukraine’s ambassador to Germany, Oleksii Makeiev, speculated that Moscow might be involved, stating on WELT TV that it could likely be Russia behind the incident.
Russia’s embassy in Germany did not immediately comment.
Lennart Pfahler contributed reporting from Berlin. The article has been updated.
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