Drone attack on Ukrainian An-124 in Leipzig: media name a GRU-linked suspected organiser

What reporters found

Russian citizen Oleg Levushkin, who is believed to have links to Russia’s military intelligence service (GRU), allegedly organised an act of sabotage at Leipzig/Halle Airport in Germany, where a drone carrying explosives attempted to damage a Ukrainian An-124 cargo aircraft. That is the finding of a joint investigation by Britain’s The Telegraph and Germany’s Welt am Sonntag published on October 2, Ukrinform reported.

The outlets cite classified intelligence documents from Germany, Lithuania and Poland as well as interviews with senior Western intelligence officials. POLITICO adds that Levushkin holds dual Latvian and Russian citizenship.

How the attack was prepared

According to the reports, Levushkin travelled to Germany via Turkey this summer to prepare an attack on Leipzig/Halle Airport, one of the key military logistics hubs through which support for Ukraine flows. He allegedly acted together with Belarusian intermediary Andrei Karshakov, whom officials describe as a “disposable agent”.

German intelligence says Levushkin carried out reconnaissance near the airport on July 31. He also rented a car at Berlin’s airport and drove to several locations where investigators believe materials for the sabotage may have been stored.

Five days later, a drone carrying about 1.8 kilograms of Semtex crashed into the wing of a parked Ukrainian An-124 and fell onto the runway without exploding. As The Telegraph reported in September, the explosive was concealed inside a tin and failed to go off because a detonator broke off. The drone itself was homemade, with some parts 3D-printed.

Investigators believe Levushkin planned the operation and left its execution to Karshakov. According to intelligence information, the explosives may have been brought into Germany through Bulgaria and Serbia, hidden in compartments of trucks. Karshakov, The Telegraph reports, remains on the run.

The GRU trail

According to the reports, Levushkin maintained contacts for many years with Denis Smolyaninov, considered one of the organisers of Russian sabotage operations in Europe; Britain sanctioned him last year. A Lithuanian intelligence report from December 2025 described Smolyaninov as head of the GRU’s Ukraine department.

German intelligence links the Leipzig attack to GRU Unit 29155, which officials say plays a key role in Russia’s sabotage operations in Europe. Investigators also see similarities with other Russian operations involving drones and explosives against targets in Poland, Lithuania and Germany.

What Moscow wants

German security authorities reportedly believe Moscow wants Europeans to see support for Ukraine as risky, in order to influence public debate and weaken support for Kyiv. A senior German intelligence official said incidents that once occurred in isolation are now being seen on a much larger scale, and that Germany is increasingly becoming a theatre of operations for Russian intelligence services.

After the incident, German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt called it a “hybrid attack scenario”. German media later reported that the An-124 had been loaded with ammunition.