Drone crashes inside Polish military base near arms depot
An unidentified UAV’s crash inside a secure compound sharpens NATO countries' fears over surveillance and base security.
Poland’s military police are investigating how an unmanned aerial vehicle of unknown origin managed to enter restricted airspace and crash inside a military compound in the country’s northeast—just metres from an arms depot.
The incident occurred on January 28 at the 2nd Radio-electronic Center in Przasnysz, about 90 kilometres north of Warsaw. Radio Zet reported that a duty officer spotted the drone flying over the base before it lost control and came down near a weapons storage area.
Soldiers secured the UAV and transferred it to a military building for examination.
A spokesperson for the commander-in-chief of the military police said investigators have since secured the device and begun formal procedures, including interviewing witnesses.
Similar drone activities
The episode underscores growing concern in Poland and across NATO about unauthorised drone activity near sensitive military and infrastructure sites, especially since Russia’s war on Ukraine and the rapid spread of inexpensive UAV technology.
Similar incidents have been reported in Germany and the Baltic states, where security services have probed repeated sightings of unidentified drones near training grounds, ports, and energy facilities—fueling worries about espionage and probing of defences.
Polish authorities say there is so far no evidence the Przasnysz crash was hostile, but they have not ruled out operator error, technical malfunction, or deliberate reconnaissance.
The Defence Ministry has not disclosed the drone’s origin, type, or whether it carried cameras or other payloads.