By Joanna Plocinska and Maria Rogmer

BERLIN, June 18 (Reuters) - Drone intrusions have disrupted airports in Europe and other drones have carried out attacks on oil fields in the Middle East, spurring rapid growth in the market for radar, jamming and defensive vehicles to protect airports and infrastructure from any new aerial threats.

Drone technology has been a source of disruption at airports for years. London's Gatwick Airport was forced to suspend flights due to drone warnings before 2020. But a new wave of hacking incidents linked to the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East has significantly heightened these concerns.

Among the technological developments that have been revealed recently are a pistol-shaped device from the American company (Didron) capable of jamming these drones, and the (Wingman) self-driving aircraft from Boeing, which flies alongside fighter jets and carries anti-drone jamming devices and interchangeable weapons in the nose.

This field attracts billions of dollars in investment, and its use extends beyond the military to sectors such as energy, shipping, data centers, hotels, and airports.

Avinor, which owns and operates 43 airports in Norway, is one of the companies that has already installed a drone detection system in its operations to address the "disruptions and delays" caused by drone incursions into air traffic.

Reuters spoke to six executives of companies in the field of countering drones, and they said there has been a sharp increase in demand from governments, airports and civil infrastructure operators.

“There is a direct impact, as many people are contacting us,” said Siti Haminga, CEO of Robin Radar, a Dutch company specializing in countering drones. The company developed the technology using research into bird strikes.

The market for countering drones is growing by approximately 20% annually.

Hybrid warfare tactics in Europe and the Middle East have highlighted the need to protect economic and civilian infrastructure, such as ports, oil fields, and airports.

Over the course of the year so far, there have been disruptions due to drone attacks on Dubai Airport, incursions into the Baltic states, fires caused by debris from intercepted drones in the Fujairah Petroleum Industrial Estate (FOIZ), and alerts for suspected drones at Munich and Copenhagen airports.

Authorities at some European airports told Reuters that they are looking to increase the use of anti-drone technologies.

Ash-Alexander Cooper, who was an executive at Didron until June and spoke to Reuters before leaving the position, said that contacts to request solutions that could be installed "as quickly as possible" began immediately after the war with Iran broke out on February 28.

He added, "I think we are one of many companies receiving these requests, now that a much larger number of countries, not just in the Middle East, realize the extent of the danger they face as the scope and nature of the immediate drone threat evolves."

Analysts estimate the global market for countering drones to be between $3 billion and $7 billion, growing at approximately 20 percent annually. MarketsandMarkets reported that this value will reach $14.5 billion by 2030, up from $4.5 billion currently.

Eben Frankenberg, CEO of Ecodyne, a manufacturer of drone-detecting radar equipment, said that investment in a new factory the company will open this year will double its annual production capacity to more than 30,000 units.

He continued, "In terms of demand for the radar equipment we produce, we have seen growth well over 100 percent over the course of a year so far, and this growth is not slowing down."

But despite the great interest in these technologies, regulatory challenges and safety questions still limit the deployment of counter-drone technology outside the military sphere.

Civilian airports apply strict rules regarding the selection of technology they can use against drones, and still place a strong emphasis on detection tools.

Problems such as jamming and interference with the Global Positioning System (GPS) can disrupt communications and navigation, rendering these systems unsuitable in airport areas. Weapons cannot also be used to shoot down drones in a civilian environment.

A spokesman for the German radar manufacturer Hensoldt said, "You simply cannot use so-called active kinetic means, such as machine guns or the like, near civilian infrastructure."

Much of it is up to national authorities to determine how systems that operate on battlefields can be used legally and safely in civilian scenarios.

"What is permitted is a regulatory matter in the hands of governments... we cannot make the decision," said Stephanie Lingemann, head of the aerospace division at the German drone and artificial intelligence company Hellsing.