Overview
Reports of unidentified drones over Australian Defence Force bases have increased more than tenfold in three years, prompting warnings that the activity could represent a growing national security challenge. Defence officials told a Senate committee that reported sightings rose from 19 in the 2022–23 financial year to 204 in 2025–26. The figures represent approximately 420 reports across the past four financial years, with a further 42 incidents recorded since the current financial year began on July 1, 2026.
Despite the sharp increase, authorities have not determined who is responsible for the flights or what motivates them. During evidence to the committee, officials were asked how many incidents involved inexperienced recreational operators, such as “a silly teenager,” and how many could be linked to foreign interference or espionage. They said investigations into the motivations were continuing, but acknowledged the scale of the challenge was growing.
Security Concerns
Defence officials said they had not identified any specific “high-end concerns” connected to the reported sightings, while stressing that the incidents remained a serious issue. The uncertainty has raised questions about whether Australia can reliably distinguish between accidental or unauthorised recreational activity and deliberate surveillance or hostile operations near sensitive military facilities.
Malcolm Davis, a defence expert at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, described the rise in unidentified drone activity as “absolutely” a national security threat. He said the most serious risk was not necessarily an amateur pilot creating a temporary disruption, but the possibility that a foreign adversary or terrorist organisation could use drones to attack a defence base.
“Drones are cheap. They can be armed with explosives. They can do real damage,” Davis said, pointing to the potential vulnerability of aircraft, buildings and other military infrastructure. He cited Ukraine’s Operation Spiderweb, a covert operation in July 2025 in which relatively inexpensive drones caused damage to high-value Russian military assets.
Williamtown Incidents
The issue attracted particular attention after unidentified drones breached restricted airspace around RAAF Base Williamtown, approximately 30 kilometres north of Newcastle in New South Wales. The base is home to fighter jets and other aircraft, and Defence confirmed that drone incursions occurred on two separate occasions in July and August.
Personnel did not shoot down the drones, and investigations into their origins remain ongoing. Defence officials told the committee that the legal framework governing responses to such incidents was “not straightforward,” raising concerns about what powers personnel currently have to intercept or destroy an unidentified aircraft.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese previously described the presence of drones around defence airspace as “unsafe and dangerous,” saying such activity made no sense. The incidents have also prompted renewed scrutiny of security arrangements at major military installations, where even a small drone could interfere with flight operations or potentially carry surveillance equipment or explosives.
Legislative Response
Legislation introduced in October would give Defence personnel the ability to shoot down unidentified drones, according to the report. The proposed changes are intended to address uncertainty over the military’s authority to respond to unauthorised flights near protected facilities.
Shadow defence minister James Paterson said the government should have acted sooner, arguing that the Coalition had been warning for months about the possibility of drone attacks against major defence infrastructure, particularly Royal Australian Air Force bases. The debate now centres on how the proposed powers would be applied while balancing public safety, legal accountability and the risk of mistakenly targeting a drone operated by an amateur. For now, Defence continues to investigate the growing number of reports without publicly attributing them to foreign interference, espionage or terrorism.
