Munich Airport's Oktoberfest Disrupted by Drone Sightings
Munich Airport has been grappling with drone sightings, leading to closures and disruptions during the city's Oktoberfest celebrations. The airport's operations were affected ahead of the festival's finale on Sunday, with closures and delays impacting thousands of passengers.
The troubles began on Friday when drones were spotted over Belgium's Elsenborn military base, heading towards the German border. This incident followed similar sightings at airports in Denmark and Norway in recent weeks, putting Europe on edge.
Munich Airport's two runways were first closed overnight into Friday due to drone sightings, halting all traffic for several hours. Flights resumed early Friday morning but were halted that evening after more drones were spotted. The airport reopened at around 7 a.m. local time on Saturday, but not before affecting around 6,500 passengers with 23 diverted flights and 58 cancellations.
Authorities attributed these drone sightings to Russian drones violating airspace, although investigations are ongoing and no specific organization or person has been confirmed responsible. Munich Airport warned of delays throughout the day due to the incident and advised passengers to check their flight status.
Munich Airport's drone-related disruptions come amidst growing concerns about European security, with unexplained drone sightings over civilian and military airports in several countries. As investigations continue, Denmark has already banned all civil drone flights in its airspace and plans to discuss a 'drone wall' initiative at a European summit to bolster security.
