Four unidentified military-style drones breached no-fly zone to target Zelenskyy's arrival in Dublin
Gardaí are investigating whether the drones took off from land in Dublin or from an undetected ship.
FOUR UNIDENTIFIED MILITARY-STYLE drones breached a no-fly zone and flew towards the flight path of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s plane at sea near Dublin Airport late on Monday night, The Journal has learned.
The plane landed, slightly ahead of schedule, just moments before the incident happened at about 11pm. The drones reached the location where Zelenskyy’s plane was expected to be at the exact moment it had been due to pass.
The drones then orbited above an Irish Navy vessel that had secretly been deployed in the Irish Sea for the Zelenskyy visit.
Sources have said that the drones took off from the north-east of Dublin, possibly near Howth, and flew for up to two hours. Enquiries are being carried out to determine whether the drones took off from land or from an undetected ship.
It is not yet known who launched and controlled the drones or where the drones are now.
Military-style drones are capable of a large range of functions. In this case, the fact that the drones had their lights on has led security forces to suspect that the aim was to disrupt the flight’s arrival into Dublin.
Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly was told about the incident in the early hours of Tuesday morning. It is understood that the Taoiseach and Ministers for Justice and Defence were also told in the hours after it happened. It is not known if Irish authorities briefed the Ukrainian president’s team.
The incident mirrors similar drone incursions in Europe in recent months which led to the closure of airports in Brussels and Denmark and caused significant security tensions.
Ireland’s security services have found that the drones in the Irish Sea were large, hugely expensive, of military specification, and that the incident could be classed as a hybrid attack.
Hybrid warfare is the use of military and non-military tactics, such as drone incursions, cyber attacks, sabotage and disinformation, to weaken or destabilise opponents without declaring a full-scale war. It is generally carried out by state-level military and intelligence services.
It is understood that the drones missed the approach of the Ukrainian leader’s plane and then turned their attention to the LÉ William Butler Yeats, the Irish naval vessel which was secretly deployed off Dublin. The drones operated within the 12 nautical mile limit of Irish-controlled waters.
A decision was made not to shoot down the drones, and there was no ability onboard the naval vessel to disable them. It is understood an Irish Air Corps aircraft was also patrolling at the time, but did not get involved.
Irish forces had limited other options for dealing with the drones, which are technically known as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Handheld equipment purchased by An Garda Síochána could not be used to take down the drones as it was out of range. There was also no air defense capability, save for the machine guns of the naval vessel. The LÉ Yeats has no air radar capability.
It is understood that deck look-outs who were working on the ship spotted the drones, which were lit up against the night sky.
No-fly zone
The Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) had issued a drone no-fly zone over Dublin and surrounding areas for the duration of the president’s visit.
The drones are believed to have been quadcopters as they were able to hover above the naval vessel. This type of drone has four propellers or rotors which allow it to stay in one position.
A high-level meeting between An Garda Sochána, the Irish Defence Forces and senior civil servants with responsibility for national security was called yesterday in Dublin to discuss the incident.
Zelenskyy’s visit to Dublin went off without any major hitches. However, his aircraft did use a specialist take off as it left Dublin Airport to limit exposure to any drone incidents.
The incident echoes the similar drone incursions in other parts of Europe in recent weeks. A drone swarm recently forced the closure of Brussels Airport, after causing similar issues in Denmark in September. The Dutch military fired on drones in an incident also.
The Dublin incident is not thought to have involved a drone swarm. Instead, sources say that the UAVs moved independently of each other, meaning they were likely operated by 4 pilots.
The incident comes just weeks after The Journal revealed significant concerns around Ireland’s security shortcomings ahead of the EU Presidency next year.
This morning we also revealed issues with the Joint Committee on Defence and National Security and its inability to investigate the issue of state security.
In a statement, the Defense Forces said: “For operational security reasons, Óglaigh na hÉireann has no comment on the specifics of any alleged incidents.
“However, DF support to the security operation, led by AGS [An Garda Siochána], was successfully deployed in multiple means, ultimately leading to a safe and successful visit by the President Zelensky to Ireland.”
A spokesman for An Garda Siochána said: “In general and without commenting on any particular incident, any such incident occurring on Irish waters is a matter for the Defence Forces.”
The Department of Defence said “no comment”.
The IAA and the Departments of Foreign Affairs, Taoiseach and Justice have also been contacted for comment.
https://www.thejournal.ie/drones-dublin-ireland-hybrid-warfare-russia-6893104-Dec2025/
