Copenhagen Airport had to unexpectedly close down on Monday night when officials found drones in the surrounding area. The unexpected closure of a runway, as confirmed by an airport representative to CNN, has led to hundreds of delayed and canceled departing flights. The airspace over the airport has been shut down since 8:30 p.m. local time due to the presence of “unidentified” drones.
Travelers were thrown into chaos when the airport declared its shutdown. As a result, it won’t reopen until at least 11 a.m. local time (5 a.m. ET) on Tuesday. Incoming flights have been rerouted to Hit Airports around Denmark. A few have even been deployed to Gothenburg and Malmö in Sweden. As of 11:17 p.m. local time, reports indicated that drones were still active in the area surrounding Copenhagen Airport.
Danish police are conducting a very serious investigation into the incident, signaling that those responsible could face severe consequences. As a spokesperson from the Copenhagen Police told the BBC at the time, “two to three large drones [could] have been flying in the area.” The implications of such unmanned aerial systems operating domestically are staggering and affect both aviation safety and national security.
The closure against the backdrop of Europe increasing it’s vindication. This increased state of alarm comes on the heels of recent instances where Russian drones entered Polish and Romanian airspace earlier this month. Danish and Norwegian authorities have stated that these drone flights in their countries have nothing to do with the incursions that may implicate Russia. They find no indications connecting the two things.
In a separate but related incident, police in Norway’s capital Oslo arrested two suspects — both foreign nationals. They had been flying drones over a restricted area around the Akershus Fortress, a medieval castle. This incident serves as a reminder of long-standing issues surrounding illegal drone activity in sensitive areas across Europe.
Authorities are still currently trying to control the situation at Copenhagen Airport. We encourage all travelers to continue checking the status of your flights and the evolving information related to the safety of air travel.
