Smugglers’ balloons are being deliberately directed into zones that pose a risk to civil aviation, the head of Lithuania’s state-owned air navigation service said on Monday.
Saulius Batavičius, CEO of Oro Navigacija, told LRT Radio on Monday that the launch patterns appeared intentional.
“We can see that the balloons are being sent very precisely into the areas most sensitive for us – for aviation and for approaches to Vilnius Airport,” he said.
Air traffic at the capital’s airport was suspended overnight from Friday to Saturday. Further restrictions were imposed on Sunday evening and remained in force until early Monday morning.
More than 7,400 passengers and 50 flights were affected, with 31 services cancelled, ten diverted and nine delayed.
Batavičius said balloons were being released at set intervals to ensure several were always present in locations critical for aircraft approaching Vilnius.
“We could only watch as the balloons hovered; we were unable to resume traffic into Vilnius Airport,” he said.
According to Oro Navigacija, around 60 balloons were detected during the eleven-hour overnight shutdown, including 40 in critical zones.
“They were being launched continuously, and the military kept updating us with new sightings. At varying altitudes and in small groups, they were effectively blocking access to the airport,” Batavičius said.
A series of recent closures at both Vilnius and Kaunas airports has been linked to weather balloons used to smuggle cigarettes from Belarus.
Lithuanian officials have described the incursions as a hybrid attack orchestrated by Minsk.
The ongoing activity prompted Lithuania to shut its two operating border checkpoints with Belarus on October 30. They were reopened on November 30, though Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė has warned that the border could be closed again at any time, and for an indefinite period, if the hybrid operations continue.
