Khaberni - Brussels Airport was reopened this Wednesday morning after drones spotted last night led to its temporary closure, however, some flights remained disrupted, according to the airport’s website.
Brussels Zaventem Airport witnessed the cancellation of about 80 flights since Tuesday evening due to drones flying in the area, but the operating company confirmed that the situation is likely to return to normal on Wednesday.
Between 400 and 500 passengers had to spend the night at the airport due to flight cancellations, as stated by Brussels Airport spokesperson Ariane Goossens to the French Press Agency, and many flights were diverted to neighboring countries, especially the Netherlands.
The company "Skies," responsible for air traffic control in Belgium, had to shut down all flight movements over the country twice on Tuesday following two consecutive reports of drones near Brussels Zaventem and Liege airports (east).
According to the airport's online records, the first batch of planes took off early today, while other flights were delayed and a few were canceled.
As has been the case in many European countries for the past two months, Belgium has experienced breaches of its airspace by drones considered suspicious, flying over sensitive sites or infrastructure.
Last week, drones flew three times over the Kleine Brogel military base (northeast) which houses American nuclear weapons, prompting an investigation by Belgian military intelligence.
Defense Minister Theo Francken refused to accuse Russia of being behind these incidents, but he pointed to a coordinated operation led by "professionals" aimed at "destabilizing" Belgium.
In the same context, the Prime Minister of Belgium, Bart De Wever, will hold a meeting tomorrow morning, Thursday, with senior police and defense officials in the country to discuss the response to the recent anonymous drone flights in the country's airspace.
