Vilnius Airport halts flights after balloon alerts
Flights at Vilnius International Airport were suspended again on Nov. 30 after unidentified objects, believed to be balloons, were spotted in nearby airspace. The shutdown lasted briefly but added to a growing number of flight disruptions Lithuania has faced in recent months.
European airports have increasingly confronted similar alerts involving drones or unknown objects, triggering temporary closures in hubs like Copenhagen and Brussels. Lithuanian authorities extended airspace restrictions around Vilnius until 5 a.m. on Dec. 1 as a precaution, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
Officials say many of the disturbances stem from weather balloons used by smugglers to transport illicit cigarettes from Belarus. Lithuania accuses Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko of enabling and weaponizing this practice as part of a broader “hybrid attack” targeting the Baltic state.
In October, Lithuania shut its last remaining border crossings with Belarus following a surge in balloon-related incidents. The crossings reopened last week after the situation appeared to stabilize, according to Reuters. Lukashenko, however, dismissed the claims as “a crazy scam,” accusing Western nations of waging a hybrid war against Belarus and Russia.
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