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France on Alert After Drone Breaches Airspace Above Eurenco Ammunition Factory Twice in a Week
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France has opened an investigation after a military-grade gunpowder plant in Bergerac, operated by Eurenco, was overflown twice this week by an unidentified drone, officials confirmed to BFM TV on November 13.
The first illegal overflights occurred on November 10 evening. A second incident followed on November 12, prompting Eurenco to file a criminal complaint, with another expected on November 14.
The Bergerac prosecutor, Anne-Cécile Dumonteil, said the case concerns the “deliberate overflight of a prohibited zone” and has been assigned to the local police. Despite a rapid response from national police, the drone operator has not been located, according to BFM TV.
General Marc Le Bouil, head of France’s air defense and air operations, told lawmakers on November 12 that the drone was likely a standard commercial model such as a DJI. He said surveillance and identification efforts continue, noting that investigations of this kind require discretion to avoid revealing counter-drone methods.
Eurenco, Europe’s leading producer of powders and explosives, operates major facilities in France, Sweden, and Belgium. Its Bergerac plant, capable of producing up to 1,200 tons of gunpowder annually for the French military, reopened this year as part of Europe’s push to rebuild its munitions industry, BFM TV wrote.
Previously, Czech President Petr Pavel has warned that repeated violations of NATO airspace by Russia should no longer be tolerated, emphasizing that a strong response is needed to deter further provocations, České noviny reported.
Speaking to high school students in Karlovy Vary, Pavel, a former head of NATO's Military Committee, explained that Russia only respects strength and views restraint as weakness.
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