NATO has raised the security level at its air base in the western German city of Geilenkirchen to the second-highest level, Charlie, following intelligence reports of a possible threat.
As a precaution, all staff not needed to operate the base have been sent home, said Christian Brett, spokesman for NATO’s Geilenkirchen Air Base.
“It’s pretty empty here,” he said Friday.
The flights are operating as planned, he said.
AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) aircraft take off and land five days a week at the airbase, located on the German border with the Netherlands and close to Belgium.
NATO has 14 AWACS aircraft stationed at the base. There are two to three AWACS flights per day from Monday to Friday.
Brett said the decision to increase the security level Thursday night was based on intelligence that indicated a potential threat. However, he declined to provide further information about the nature or circumstances of the increased security.
However, he did reject speculation about possible drone overflights over the air base: “That is absurd.”
Overflight of the base is prohibited for unauthorized aircraft and the airspace is closely monitored. “Nothing has been flown over here yet,” Brett said.
In NATO terms, security level Charlie means that an incident has occurred or there is evidence indicating a high likelihood of terrorist action against the alliance.
The spokesman said there was no cause for concern and that it was purely a precautionary measure to ensure the continuity of critical operations. However, he added that such a threat level was unusual and had not occurred at the Geilenkirchen base for years.
According to Brett, there are about 1,600 people working at the base, but a significant number of employees are currently away on vacation. About half of the remaining employees are now home due to the alert level, although many are still working.
Police confirmed their presence but gave no further details, including the number of officers. A dpa reporter saw police cars on the premises. The security level “C” was displayed on electronic displays and signs at the entrance to the base.
The AWACS aircraft are converted Boeing 707 aircraft with a mushroom-shaped radar structure. They can locate and identify other aircraft at a range of more than 400 kilometers and relay this information to all others in the airspace with similar equipment, meaning they can act as air battle control centers.
