Drone forces 45-minute halt to flights at Berlin airport

Flight operations at Berlin airport came to a complete halt for 45 minutes on Wednesday evening after a drone was sighted in the vicinity of the airport, according to airport and German federal police spokespeople.

What happened

The drone was first spotted at around 8 p.m. local time (9 p.m. Latvian time). The sighting prompted Germany's air traffic control service to close the airport's northern runway to both departing and arriving flights.

About twenty minutes later, at 8:20 p.m. local time (9:20 p.m. Latvian time), the situation began to develop further, though the source material does not provide additional detail on when normal operations resumed.

Context

Drone sightings near airports have repeatedly disrupted operations at several European airports in recent times, as the presence of unidentified drones in controlled airspace is treated as a serious safety concern for passengers and flight crews alike. In such cases, air traffic authorities typically take a cautious approach, pausing or restricting flights until the potential threat has been assessed.

Berlin airport is one of Germany's major aviation hubs, and any disruption there can cause ripple-effect delays across the wider European flight network.