German Aerospace Center (DLR)

The German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt, DLR) is the national aeronautics and space research centre of the Federal Republic of Germany, headquartered in Cologne. Its research on unmanned aircraft systems is concentrated at the Institute of Flight Systems in Braunschweig, which develops concepts and technologies for autonomous UAS, including flight control, sensors, system integration and testing.

In 2019 DLR took over Magdeburg-Cochstedt Airport and in 2021 officially opened its National Experimental Test Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems there. The site offers hangars, workshops and controlled airspace for test campaigns by DLR and external partners; in 2025 it was in use on more than 200 days, about half of them by external users. Since 2023 DLR has also been building a U-space real-life laboratory at the centre.

DLR is increasingly active in drone defence. In the CUSTODIAN project (Counter-UAS Technologies for Detection, Interception and Neutralization), led by the Institute of Flight Systems, twelve DLR institutes and facilities demonstrated detection, situation assessment and neutralisation of hostile drones, including navigation-signal interference and an autonomous interceptor drone. In August 2026 DLR opened a Technology Center for Drone Security in Cochstedt and Braunschweig together with the Federal Ministry of the Interior and the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space; its work is integrated into the Joint Counter-Drone Centre (GDAZ).