Nearly 200 drone sightings near UK military sites this year

The Ministry of Defence has confirmed that there have been 187 drone sightings near high-security military establishments across the UK since the start of 2025.

Responding to a parliamentary question from Plaid Cymru peer Lord Wigley, Defence Minister Lord Coaker said the department would not disclose details of the locations or countermeasures used but emphasised that security was taken extremely seriously.

“We will not comment on the sensitivity of establishments or our specific security arrangements in relation to identifying and capturing drones,” Coaker said. “However, we can assure you that we take the safety and security of our personnel, assets and operations extremely seriously. We maintain multi-layered security measures, including counter-drone capabilities which can identify and facilitate the capture of drones.”

Last year, a Freedom of Information investigation revealed dozens of such incidents at nuclear facilities between 2021 and 2023, ranging from false alarms and authorised flights to unidentified drones that evaded detection.

That earlier data showed that drone-related events occurred at nuclear power stations, research centres, and defence sites including the Atomic Weapons Establishment at Aldermaston and Burghfield, as well as bases associated with the UK’s nuclear submarine fleet. Some claimed, but perhaps unlikely, sightings were as high as 20,000 feet, while others triggered security alarms or prompted police searches that yielded no results.

The widespread availability of commercial drones, combined with their increasing range and payload capacity, continues to test existing frameworks. Officials insist that measures are in place to detect and counter unauthorised drones, yet the frequency of incidents underscores the difficulty of protecting vast and varied critical infrastructure against inexpensive, easily modified systems capable of gathering intelligence or disrupting operations.