Once in a while we’ll hear of airport operations being interrupted by unauthorized drones. However, last night we saw what seems to be a pretty unprecedented drone attack on a major airport.
In this post:
Drones cause operational issues at Copenhagen Airport
On the evening of Monday, September 22, 2025, Copenhagen Airport (CPH) was shut down for several hours. Starting at around 8:30PM, and for a period lasting a few hours, drones were spotted in the area of the airport.
According to the police, the drones were unusually large, and they may have been flown in from far away, or even from a ship. Shooting down the drones would’ve been too risky, given the potential danger to those on the ground.
This drone attack caused the airport to close to arriving and departing flights, leading to dozens of flight diversions and cancellations. Police were on sight at the airport, and an investigation is being conducted into what the source of these drones was. Eventually the drones just disappeared, and normal operations resumed.
There’s believed to be a professional motive for this
Sometimes when airport operations are interrupted by drones, it’s because some amateur is just flying their drone too close to the airport, without understanding the impacts that can have on the operation.
However, in this situation, Denmark’s Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, is calling these drones a grave attack on key infrastructure, and believes this was a deliberate attempt to disrupt operations. It’s the biggest such attack that the country has dealt with to date.
The belief is that this was a professional attack with a deliberate motive, and police are working closely with the military and international partner services to determine the cause. The leading theory is that this was a state-sponsored operation, aimed at disrupting operations at the airport.
It has been a rough several days at European airports, as we also recently saw a cyberattack that caused operational issues at several European airports. For that matter, we’ve also seen an Estonian airspace violation by Russia. We’ll see how this all plays out, but it sure sounds like this wasn’t the first such attack, and might not be the last.
I’m no expert on police investigations or drones, so I do have a question. When these drones had shut down the airport for hours, how were they not able to trace where the drones went? You’d think a helicopter or plane could track these, no? Is it because the drones go “dark,” or…?
Bottom line
Copenhagen Airport suffered a drone attack last night, whereby large drones were spotted near the airport, causing operations to be suspended for hours. It’s believed that this was an intentional act, and it’s being investigated as such. It sure seems like Russia may be involved in some form, given recent happenings, but I guess we’ll find out soon enough…
What do you make of this drone attack at Copenhagen Airport?
“a state-sponsored operation…”
Why don’t you just say Russian?
I guess Russia would be an obvious suspect herel. Only problem with that theory is that Denmark isn't bordering Russia and this incident doesn't line up with its usual methodology.
Another country that has the ability and motivation to disrupt Denmark is the US. With trump trying to take Greenland away from Denmark, it would be in their interest to destabilize Denmark. Perhaps not super likely, but possible, and with the cry baby in power...
I guess Russia would be an obvious suspect herel. Only problem with that theory is that Denmark isn't bordering Russia and this incident doesn't line up with its usual methodology.
Another country that has the ability and motivation to disrupt Denmark is the US. With trump trying to take Greenland away from Denmark, it would be in their interest to destabilize Denmark. Perhaps not super likely, but possible, and with the cry baby in power anything is possible.
Let's face it, for all the work Russia has done to destabilize parts of the world, that work pales in comparison to the track record of the US.
@Arie That's... quite a reach. The US launching drone attacks on Copenhagen Airport because of Greenland? Come on.
Denmark not bordering Russia is irrelevant - Russia's been projecting power far beyond its borders for years. The Baltic Sea is practically a Russian lake operationally, and they've demonstrated the ability to launch drone operations from ships.
More importantly, this fits perfectly with Russia's established pattern: the Polish drone swarm two weeks ago, Estonian airspace violations, cyberattacks...
@Arie That's... quite a reach. The US launching drone attacks on Copenhagen Airport because of Greenland? Come on.
Denmark not bordering Russia is irrelevant - Russia's been projecting power far beyond its borders for years. The Baltic Sea is practically a Russian lake operationally, and they've demonstrated the ability to launch drone operations from ships.
More importantly, this fits perfectly with Russia's established pattern: the Polish drone swarm two weeks ago, Estonian airspace violations, cyberattacks on European airports. They're systematically testing NATO responses across multiple vectors.
Your "US has a worse track record" whataboutism doesn't change the evidence here. Russia has motive (pressure NATO), means (demonstrated drone capabilities), and opportunity (ongoing campaign against European infrastructure).
The US attacking a close ally's airport over a diplomatic dispute that's been ongoing for years? That's not geopolitics, that's conspiracy theory territory.
No fair reading of the historical record would put the US on the same moral level as Putin's Russia. This from a Swede who frequently disagrees with American foreign policy.
What a time to be alive, when it is equally plausible that it could either be the US or Russia terrorizing a democratic country.
@Dalameda
Not even close to equally plausible, and if you truly believe it is you need a refresher on Russia's post-USSR history.
What a time to be alive. Now cheap drone warfare became accessible to so many small parties. Anyone really can be launching such drones and causing multi-million dollar damage in disrupting major airports flights. It can be groups of local "green" activists, cartels, terror groups - many personages really.
Well, by prolonging the war Europeans let the genie out of the bottle. Somehow I don't see a reason to feel anything bad for them.
@Anrec80 Yeah, this is classic Russian troll behavior - deflect blame, sow confusion, then victim-blame Europeans for "prolonging the war" by... checks notes... helping a sovereign nation defend itself against an unprovoked invasion.
The "genie out of the bottle" line is particularly telling. Russia invaded Ukraine, Russia is launching these drone attacks, but somehow it's Europe's fault for not just letting Putin take whatever he wants? That's some impressive mental gymnastics.
What exactly is Europe...
@Anrec80 Yeah, this is classic Russian troll behavior - deflect blame, sow confusion, then victim-blame Europeans for "prolonging the war" by... checks notes... helping a sovereign nation defend itself against an unprovoked invasion.
The "genie out of the bottle" line is particularly telling. Russia invaded Ukraine, Russia is launching these drone attacks, but somehow it's Europe's fault for not just letting Putin take whatever he wants? That's some impressive mental gymnastics.
What exactly is Europe supposed to do according to your logic? Roll over and let Russia annex its neighbors piece by piece? Because that worked out so well in the 1930s, right?
The pattern is clear: Russia attacks, then blames everyone else for the consequences of their own aggression. "Look what you made me do" is abuser logic, not geopolitical analysis.
Nice try though. Maybe next time lead with "I'm not defending Russia, but..." - that's usually how these comments start.
Looking at the pattern of recent incidents, this Copenhagen drone attack has Russia's fingerprints all over it. Just in the past few weeks we've seen Russian drones violate Polish airspace (shot down by NATO), Russian jets buzz Estonian airspace for 12 minutes, and a ransomware attack hit major European airports including Heathrow and Brussels.
The sophistication here - "unusually large" drones possibly launched from ships - screams state-sponsored operation, not some amateur with a hobby...
Looking at the pattern of recent incidents, this Copenhagen drone attack has Russia's fingerprints all over it. Just in the past few weeks we've seen Russian drones violate Polish airspace (shot down by NATO), Russian jets buzz Estonian airspace for 12 minutes, and a ransomware attack hit major European airports including Heathrow and Brussels.
The sophistication here - "unusually large" drones possibly launched from ships - screams state-sponsored operation, not some amateur with a hobby drone. Russia's playbook is pretty clear: probe NATO defenses, disrupt critical infrastructure, test response times, all while maintaining plausible deniability. They're escalating the hybrid warfare but staying just below the threshold that would trigger Article 5.
Denmark's PM is right to call this a "grave attack on key infrastructure." This isn't coincidence - it's coordinated intimidation designed to show Europe that Russia can reach their airports, their airspace, their critical systems whenever they want. The message is clear: we can disrupt your daily life and there's not much you can do about it.
Time for Europe to stop treating these as isolated incidents and start responding to the broader campaign.
Should one read your submission as a war cry to retaliate, Writing’s?
@AeroB13a That's a patently silly reading of my comment and you know it. Far from a war cry - my comment is just basic pattern recognition. When someone keeps testing your locks and probing your defenses, you don't ignore it until they kick down the door. Taking sensible measures in response to past provocation and to protect against future incursions is not a "war cry."
thank you.
It is clear that it is up to Europe to fund and enforce whatever support Ukraine for the long term
This isn't an isolated incident.
@Tim Dunn
The US still has a responsibility to Ukraine. We signed the Budapest memorandum, we are obligated to ensure Ukraine's security. This isn't just an EU problem, letting Russia get away with Ukraine shows China that we won't go to bat for Taiwan either. Where does that end? Will we go to bat for Poland or the Baltics? For Finland? For the Philippines or Japan? Like or not we ARE the de facto...
@Tim Dunn
The US still has a responsibility to Ukraine. We signed the Budapest memorandum, we are obligated to ensure Ukraine's security. This isn't just an EU problem, letting Russia get away with Ukraine shows China that we won't go to bat for Taiwan either. Where does that end? Will we go to bat for Poland or the Baltics? For Finland? For the Philippines or Japan? Like or not we ARE the de facto leaders of the democratic world, and abdicating our role as the world police for lack of a better term encourages states like Russia and China to try their luck. If we leave Ukraine to die, we'd be walking into a new World War when we finally do react to a red line.
@Tim Dunn While Europe should coordinate on this, it would be foolish to leave our European allies twisting in the wind when a plain reading of recent history shows that Putin's ambitions are far grander than just taking back a bit of Europe. Add to it vital treaty obligations. Article 4 has been invoked once - on 9/11, to benefit the US. We show our treaty promises to be meaningless if we're not willing to...
@Tim Dunn While Europe should coordinate on this, it would be foolish to leave our European allies twisting in the wind when a plain reading of recent history shows that Putin's ambitions are far grander than just taking back a bit of Europe. Add to it vital treaty obligations. Article 4 has been invoked once - on 9/11, to benefit the US. We show our treaty promises to be meaningless if we're not willing to continue to show up for our allies the way they showed up for us then.
@Tim Dunn Quick correction - hit the wrong key, meant to write Article 5, not Article 4.
We’re all trying to find the guy who did this!
Hahaha thanks Tim Robinson
Sure smells like Russians. After all, they just flew drones into Poland not too long ago. They'll keep this up until they are forcefully stopped. And if you let them win in Ukraine, next will be the Baltic countries, then Poland.
Another day, another Zionist distraction. And another Mossad attack on freedom and democracy.
BZ - Another day, another random antisemitic crackpot take on the news.
It's hard to judge what was that in Poland. Drones that small won't make it from Russia into Poland. Plus, none of them carried explosive charges.
Ukrainians - those could do this, but drone warfare now became accessible to even small groups of activists, it could be anyone really. Ukrainians are losing on the battlefield, are running thin on manpower, and desperately need to pull other parties into the war. Right now, nobody wants...
It's hard to judge what was that in Poland. Drones that small won't make it from Russia into Poland. Plus, none of them carried explosive charges.
Ukrainians - those could do this, but drone warfare now became accessible to even small groups of activists, it could be anyone really. Ukrainians are losing on the battlefield, are running thin on manpower, and desperately need to pull other parties into the war. Right now, nobody wants to go fight for them, but Poles may find themselves in a situation where they have to join the fight.
@Anrec80
Is that what they're saying on RT? You need more believable propaganda. Here's the facts:
1. Russia has used Belarus as a launchpad for drone incursions over the past several months, sending Gerbera type (think simplified Iranian Shahed design) drones first into the Baltics and then into Poland. These aren't quadcopters, these are large drones that can fly hundreds of miles to a target.
2. It does not matter one iota whether they...
@Anrec80
Is that what they're saying on RT? You need more believable propaganda. Here's the facts:
1. Russia has used Belarus as a launchpad for drone incursions over the past several months, sending Gerbera type (think simplified Iranian Shahed design) drones first into the Baltics and then into Poland. These aren't quadcopters, these are large drones that can fly hundreds of miles to a target.
2. It does not matter one iota whether they carried explosives or not, they violated multiple other sovereign countries' airspaces, putting both aircraft and people on the ground at risk.
3. Russia has a VERY long history of "gray-zone" warfare. Actions like cyberwarfare, cutting undersea cables, sabotaging infrastructure, and assassinating political dissidents in foreign countries, all of which are intended to cause harm to Russia's neighbors and get them to bend to Russia's influence but without triggering open warfare.
The minute NATO, even without the US, puts skin in the game, Russia's incursion is done. The gap in capabilities between what's left of Russia's air force and even just Poland and France is hilarious. It would look like Desert Storm all over again.
@Dusty Exactly right. Anrec80's comment hits every classic disinformation talking point - "could be anyone," "Ukraine is desperate," "small drones can't fly that far." It's almost like they're reading from a script.
The facts are clear: Russia has been systematically using Belarus as a launch point for these long-range Gerbera drones for months. The forensic evidence from the wreckage confirms Russian origin. Polish and NATO officials wouldn't stake their credibility on "maybe it was activists"...
@Dusty Exactly right. Anrec80's comment hits every classic disinformation talking point - "could be anyone," "Ukraine is desperate," "small drones can't fly that far." It's almost like they're reading from a script.
The facts are clear: Russia has been systematically using Belarus as a launch point for these long-range Gerbera drones for months. The forensic evidence from the wreckage confirms Russian origin. Polish and NATO officials wouldn't stake their credibility on "maybe it was activists" - they have radar tracks, debris analysis, and intelligence showing exactly where these came from.
The "no explosives" argument is particularly weak. If I fly an unauthorized aircraft through JFK airspace, I don't get to claim it's harmless because I wasn't carrying bombs. Airspace violations shut down civilian aviation and put lives at risk regardless of payload.
Russia's betting that people won't connect the dots between the cable cutting, the cyberattacks, the airspace violations, and now this. They want us debating "who could it be?" while they probe our defenses.
Don't fall for it.
Without knowing the full facts, one is minded to suspect the following three possible culprits:
1. Russia. (Obviously)
2. Belarus. (Possibly)
3. Ukraine. (Perhaps)
Now I know that to many people Ukraine is far too ‘left of arc’. However, think undersea cables and who has much to gain by blackening the name of Russia.
Undersea cables? You mean the Nordstream sabotage, which was the only thing Ukraine was actually implicated in and was done because it was Russian state-owned property keeping Germany on the Russian energy teat and funding the Russian war machine? Because the two recent undersea cable cuttings in the Baltic sea were both done by ships coming out of Russia, one of which (Eagle S) was part of the Russian dark fleet and the other two...
Undersea cables? You mean the Nordstream sabotage, which was the only thing Ukraine was actually implicated in and was done because it was Russian state-owned property keeping Germany on the Russian energy teat and funding the Russian war machine? Because the two recent undersea cable cuttings in the Baltic sea were both done by ships coming out of Russia, one of which (Eagle S) was part of the Russian dark fleet and the other two being Chinese vessels (Newnew Polar Bear and Yi Peng 3).
Ukraine has nothing to gain by shutting down CPH for a day. Russia's name is already mud, and it'd be far too easy for any downed/malfunctioned drone to lead investigators back to Ukraine. Quite simply, Zelensky and his intelligence services aren't anywhere near stupid enough to try something like this. Russia does it as part of their standard playbook though, and Belarus marches to Putin's orders.
Ukraine is losing this war and is in desperate need to pull other parties into it. Plus, the regime in Kiev isn't really a government in a sense Europeans understand - where there is clear subordination, control, following orders. It's more like a gathering of competing gangs there. No strong and clear subordination, everyone has their own game, and nobody controls anyone or anything up to 100% degree. There, it could easily be done by...
Ukraine is losing this war and is in desperate need to pull other parties into it. Plus, the regime in Kiev isn't really a government in a sense Europeans understand - where there is clear subordination, control, following orders. It's more like a gathering of competing gangs there. No strong and clear subordination, everyone has their own game, and nobody controls anyone or anything up to 100% degree. There, it could easily be done by an intelligence general or even a colonel, without anyone's approval.
That theory doesn't hold up well when you look at the evidence. Ukraine has nothing to gain from shutting down Copenhagen Airport for a few hours - it would be a massive strategic own-goal that could jeopardize Western support. Plus, if any drone malfunctioned or was captured, forensic analysis would immediately trace it back to Ukrainian sources, which would be catastrophic for Zelensky diplomatically.
Russia, on the other hand, has been systematically probing European defenses...
That theory doesn't hold up well when you look at the evidence. Ukraine has nothing to gain from shutting down Copenhagen Airport for a few hours - it would be a massive strategic own-goal that could jeopardize Western support. Plus, if any drone malfunctioned or was captured, forensic analysis would immediately trace it back to Ukrainian sources, which would be catastrophic for Zelensky diplomatically.
Russia, on the other hand, has been systematically probing European defenses with the exact same playbook - the Polish drone swarm, the Estonian airspace violations, the Collins Aerospace cyberattack. This fits their hybrid warfare doctrine perfectly: maximum disruption with plausible deniability.
The "false flag to blame Russia" angle falls apart because Russia's reputation is already in the gutter after nearly 4 years of war. There's no need for Ukraine to stage elaborate operations to make Russia look bad - Russia does that plenty on its own with actual attacks on civilian infrastructure.
Occam's razor applies here: when you see a pattern of escalating infrastructure attacks across Europe, the simplest explanation is usually the right one.
To some people, if from a distance a bird looks like a duck, sounds like a duck and takes flight like a duck then they assume that it must be a duck. Those people also tend to forget that on closer inspection it could turn out to be a goose …. :-)
@AeroB13a
You are not coming across as clever or open-minded here. There is no instance of Ukraine violating an EU country's airspace with drones. There is one (1) possible instance of Ukraine sabotaging an undersea, Russian state-owned pipeline. There are at least four (4) prior instances of Russia violating EU countries' airspace with drones, and by my count at least three (3) instances of a Russian or Russian-aligned vessel cutting undersea cables by dragging...
@AeroB13a
You are not coming across as clever or open-minded here. There is no instance of Ukraine violating an EU country's airspace with drones. There is one (1) possible instance of Ukraine sabotaging an undersea, Russian state-owned pipeline. There are at least four (4) prior instances of Russia violating EU countries' airspace with drones, and by my count at least three (3) instances of a Russian or Russian-aligned vessel cutting undersea cables by dragging their anchors on the seabed. There's no need for Ukraine to engage in something like this that could easily backfire on them, when Russia is already doing everything it can to ruin what little reputation it had.
@AeroB13a - Attempting to parse your metaphor. When you see coordinated drone swarms launched from Russian territory, using Russian-designed aircraft, following established Russian gray-zone tactics, during an active Russian military campaign... sometimes it really is just a duck.
Your "could be a goose" metaphor falls apart when we have radar tracks, debris analysis, and a clear pattern of escalating Russian provocations across multiple NATO countries. This isn't about assumptions - it's about evidence.
But sure,...
@AeroB13a - Attempting to parse your metaphor. When you see coordinated drone swarms launched from Russian territory, using Russian-designed aircraft, following established Russian gray-zone tactics, during an active Russian military campaign... sometimes it really is just a duck.
Your "could be a goose" metaphor falls apart when we have radar tracks, debris analysis, and a clear pattern of escalating Russian provocations across multiple NATO countries. This isn't about assumptions - it's about evidence.
But sure, let's entertain every wild theory while Russia systematically probes European defenses. I'm sure that's exactly the kind of confusion they're hoping for.
Just absolutely insane the level of apologetics people will get to, up to and including ignoring past behavior, patterns of behavior, and forensic evidence that behavior left behind, just to try to appear open minded or fair. It's the enlightened centrism midwittery but for international relations.
So, Ben, you still think that we should care about russian civilians in their stolen planes?
Good grief! There's no need to taunt. Guy can't get every call right, and there's room for reasonable people to disagree.
Also, lil tip for ya - if you're trying to convince someone to come around to your way of thinking, ridiculing them for what you believe to be their past missteps isn't the best way to go about it.
"It sure seems like Russia may be involved in some form"
Maybe let's just wait for the investigation no?
Why? Even if fake, russians can - and should - be blamed for anything.
I'd be careful taking this stance. Today you are blaming Russians in everything, and one not so wonderful day you find yourself in a hugely escalated war until the last Pole, Estonian, Finn...
Russian troll (Anrec80) - learn basic sentence structure in English before trolling.
"It sure seems like Russia may be involved in some form"
Maybe let's just wait for the investigation no?
- Investigations start with theories, GRkennedy. If a cluster of events with hallmarks of Russian activity happen in quick succession, it's logical to examine Russia as a possible culprit.
Remember that we actually WON wars against Russians, unlike others.
It’s the Hohols most likely
All Russians are villains. Haven’t you ever see a Bond movie?
A forensic examination of any debris will likely find tell-tale signs of their fabrication and source. Let's withhold judgment until findings are released.
To what debris are you referring?
Those small cheap drones now can be 3D-printed and assembled in virtually any garage or a small improvised basement shop. This is how Ukrainians make them. They aren't necessarily factory assembled even.
Fair. Modern FPV drones can be assembled from readily available components and 3D-printed parts. Ukrainian workshops have definitely demonstrated this capability at scale.
However, the Copenhagen incident involved what authorities described as "unusually large" drones that operated for hours and possibly launched from ships offshore. That suggests something beyond garage-built FPV units - we're talking about drones with extended range, significant payload capacity, and sophisticated navigation systems to coordinate a multi-hour airport shutdown.
Fair. Modern FPV drones can be assembled from readily available components and 3D-printed parts. Ukrainian workshops have definitely demonstrated this capability at scale.
However, the Copenhagen incident involved what authorities described as "unusually large" drones that operated for hours and possibly launched from ships offshore. That suggests something beyond garage-built FPV units - we're talking about drones with extended range, significant payload capacity, and sophisticated navigation systems to coordinate a multi-hour airport shutdown.