Thales Belgium faces drone threats while racing to boost rocket production

One of Europe’s largest air defence firms has raised the alarm over a surge in drone overflights above its most sensitive facilities and is calling for clear rules on how to counter them.

“We are seeing more drones than what was the case a few months ago,” said Alain Quevrin, country director for Thales Belgium, citing repeated sightings over the company’s Évegnée Fort site in the eastern Liège region, the only Belgian facility licensed to assemble and store explosives for its 70 mm rockets.

The warning comes amid increasing reports of unmanned aerial vehicles in Poland, Romania, Germany, Norway, and Denmark over the past month. Some drones, particularly those over Poland and Romania, were Russian, while the origin of others remains unclear. In response, Copenhagen temporarily banned drone flights last week, and NATO has launched its Eastern Sentry program to address critical gaps in the alliance’s air defences.

“We are concerned,” Quevrin said, noting that the alerts coincide with Thales’ plans to double production of unguided and laser-guided FZ275 rockets to 70,000 units in the coming years, contingent on demand. The company has made a “huge effort” to install detection systems across its sites. Although jammers could block the signals controlling drones and bring them down, “we are not allowed — legally,” Quevrin explained, citing the risk of property damage or injuries.

Quevrin stressed that Belgium and other countries must clarify “what is the right process” for handling drone sightings, including where police responsibilities end and those of private companies begin. “The process needs to be clarified,” he said, speaking as technicians assembled the company’s signature munitions in pristine white laboratories. “It is a situation all of us have to face.”

Demand for Thales rockets has been “unbelievable,” Quevrin added, as NATO seeks solutions to secure its skies. Most current production is heading to Ukraine. The rockets, manufactured at Thales’ Herstal and Évegnée Fort facilities, can be used against drones, with laser-guided versions targeting larger high-altitude UAVs, such as Iranian-designed Shaheds, and unguided versions dispersing thousands of steel balls to neutralise swarms of smaller low-altitude drones.

The military alliance has faced criticism for its response to recent airspace incursions, with NATO warplanes using multimillion-dollar missiles to destroy Russian drones costing around $10,000 each, made largely of wood and foam.

Since the incursion into Poland, Thales has received dozens of orders for its 8-kilometre-range rockets, which comply with NATO standards and are compatible with existing systems.

“It’s a plug-and-play solution just to address more and more types of targets,” Quevrin said. Germany, Italy, Spain, and Poland are among the company’s top NATO clients, and the rockets are reportedly four times cheaper than alternatives on the market.

To meet this growing demand, Quevrin said the EU must support the industry in overcoming hurdles related to cross-border projects and procurement for both companies and governments.

While the EU cannot directly fund weapons and military equipment, it has introduced initiatives such as the €150 billion SAFE loans-for-weapons program to facilitate joint arms procurement by member states.

By Tamilla Hasanova