Oct. 4 (UPI) — Germany’s Munich International Airport resumed flights on Saturday morning after drone sightings closed the airport for 7 1/2 hours, the second disruption in 24 hours.
Drones have affected aviation throughout Europe with Russia suspected of launching them. Several European Union members want a multi-layered “drone wall” to quickly detect, track and destroy drones.
The airport said flights stopped at 9:30 p.m. Friday, affecting around 6,500 passengers.
It reopened at 5 a.m. local time when flight arrivals and departures were deemed safe, a call handler fielding passenger inquiries told CNN.
In a statement Saturday, the airport said 23 arriving flights were diverted and 12 into Munich were canceled. And 46 outbound flights were canceled or postponed.
On Thursday night, 17 flights were grounded because of several drone sightings near the airport.
“As on the previous night, Munich Airport worked with the airlines to immediately provide for passengers in the terminals,” airport officials said in a statement. “Camp beds were set up, and blankets, drinks and snacks were distributed.
“When a drone sighting is suspected, the safety of travellers is the top priority. Reporting chains between air traffic control, airports and police authorities have been established for years. It is important to emphasise that the detection and defense against drones are sovereign tasks and are the responsibility of the federal and state police,” the officials said.
Also Thursday, authorities in Belgium were investigating 15 drones spotted above the Elsenborn military site near the German border, according to Belgian media. The drones then reportedly flew from Belgium to western Germany.
Recently, Russian drones reportedly crossed into Poland and Russian MiG-31 jets entered Estonian airspace in separate incidents.
Russia has denied involvement in the drones in southern Germany in Bavaria, about 18 miles northeast of Munich, is the second-busiest in Germany, behind the one in Frankfurt, handling 41.6 million passengers in 2024.
Munich International is a hub for German flag-carrier Lufthansa. The first flight to touch down after the delay was Lufthansa’s flight from Bangkok at 5:25 a.m., according to the airport’s tracking website. Then starting at 6 a.m., several other flights landed.
The first seven departures were at 5:50 a.m.
