Germany shuts Munich airport after wave of drone sightings; 17 flights grounded, 15 diverted

Germany’s Munich Airport was closed temporarily last night after several drones were spotted in its airspace, the latest in unmanned aircraft entering European aviation hubs and forcing the closure of airports.

The airport said on Thursday that a total of 17 flights were grounded after 10 pm local time, affecting nearly 3,000 passengers. Apart from this, 15 flights were also diverted to the German cities of Stuttgart, Nuremberg and Frankfurt.

Located in southern Germany, the airport in Bavaria serves as a hub for the German flag carrier Lufthansa and handled nearly 20 million passengers in the first half of this year.

Europe has been troubled with unexplained drone sightings in the past couple of days, with most countries suspecting Russia behind the incursions, although the Kremlin has categorically denied being involved.

Last week, Denmark closed several of its airports after drones were sighted in its airspace, the second such incident reported in the Nordic country that week.

Danish Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said that the drone incursions were done professionally, adding that they looked systematic and hybrid in nature. While the country’s Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, said that authorities cannot conclude who was behind the drone sightings, he noted that “we can at least conclude that there is primarily one country that poses a threat to Europe’s security – and that is Russia.”

European Union leaders are discussing setting up a “drone wall” of defences after high-profile air incursions by Russia.

The first call for the project came last month from EU chief Ursula von der Leyen in the hours after a swarm of Russian drones breached Poland’s airspace.

While details were scant, the initial plan appeared clearly focused on helping to shore up the EU’s eastern frontier from the threat from Moscow.

The EU has said it wants to work with Ukraine, which has developed deep expertise in tackling Russian drones after almost four years of war.

“We are ready to share this experience with our partners,” Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

With inputs from agencies