Alleged drone sightings disrupt flights at Belgian airports

Suspected drone sightings disrupted flights at airports in Belgium on Tuesday, with no flights departing or arriving at Brussels airport, the country’s busiest.

Air traffic there was grounded around 8:00 p.m. local time (19:00 GMT) after a drone was spotted. An hour later, it briefly reopened before closing again shortly after.

Liege Airport is also affected and it is not clear when flights will resume. Local media also reported sightings of drones at the Kleine-Brogel and Florennes military bases, local media reported.

It is the latest in a series of alleged drone sightings causing disruption at European airports – including Munich, Copenhagen and Oslo.

A statement on the Brussels Airport website on Tuesday evening read: “There are currently no flights departing or arriving at Brussels Airport due to sightings of drones around the airport.

“We are monitoring the situation closely and will provide updates as soon as we have more information.”

Photos taken inside the airport show what appear to be stretcher beds prepared for passengers.

Officials at Brussels’ second-largest airport, Charleroi, said air traffic there was also briefly grounded as a precaution.

Local media reported that flights were initially diverted to Liege – previously also closed due to suspected drone sightings.

It added that flights have since been diverted to nearby airports – including Ostend and Charleroi in Belgium and Eindhoven and Maastricht in the Netherlands.

Tuesday was the fourth night in a row reported by Belgian authorities drone sightings over Kleine-Brogel, a large military base near the Dutch border.

Belgian Defense Minister Theo Franken said on Monday that an investigation was underway, calling it “a clear mission targeting Kleine Broge”.

Drones were also spotted near Ostend and Antwerp Deurne airports over the weekend, according to Belgian news site VRT.