Airspace restrictions were lifted at 5:00 local time, Lithuanian Airports (LTOU) said, adding that operations had returned to normal.
Vilnius Airport resumed operations on Monday morning after flights were suspended on Sunday evening due to the threat posed by smugglers’ balloons.
The airport had been shut for almost eleven hours – from 18:09 on Sunday –after balloons launched from Belarus entered Lithuanian airspace. More than 7,400 passengers and 50 flights were affected, with 31 services cancelled, ten diverted and nine delayed.
According to initial information, the restrictions were triggered when navigation systems detected traces consistent with balloons drifting towards the airport.
Saulius Batavičius, chief executive of the air-navigation provider Oro Navigacija, told LRT Radio that around 60 balloons were detected during the shutdown, including 40 in areas deemed critical for approach and departure routes.
“There were about 60 balloons in total, and around 40 of them were in locations critical for traffic to Vilnius Airport. They were being launched constantly, and the military kept updating us with new sightings. At different altitudes and in groups, they were practically blocking access to the airport,” he said.
LTOU warned that isolated delays may persist throughout the day as disrupted crew and aircraft rotations are resolved. Passengers whose flights were affected have been advised to contact their airlines directly.
Weather balloons used to smuggle cigarettes from Belarus have prompted several temporary shutdowns at both Vilnius and Kaunas airports in recent weeks. Aircraft movements in Vilnius were halted again overnight from Friday to Saturday, with restrictions in place for around eight hours.
Lithuanian officials describe the incursions as a hybrid attack orchestrated by Minsk.
The threat to civil aviation was the reason Lithuania closed its border with Belarus for nearly a month in late October. The government reopened it earlier than planned last week, citing an improved situation, but Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė has said the border may be closed again at any time – and for an unlimited period – should the hybrid attack continue.
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