Аэропорт Вильнюса. Фото: vilnius-airport.lt
Operations at Vilnius Airport were disrupted again overnight. Airspace restrictions were introduced at 1:18 a.m. after radar detected objects consistent with weather balloons. Airport operations resumed at 4:00 a.m.
The restrictions affected five flights and 453 passengers. Four flights were diverted to other airports, including two to Kaunas, while one flight was cancelled.
Vilmantas Vitkauskas, head of the National Crisis Management Centre, said that five radar tracks linked to smugglers’ weather balloons were detected overnight in the Vilnius District Municipality and Šalčininkai District Municipality. According to him, the balloons’ flight paths intersected with the approach route used by aircraft landing at the Lithuanian capital’s airport, LRT reported. Authorities are searching for the balloons on the ground.
The previous time Vilnius Airport was closed because of weather balloons was in May.