Lithuania announced that what was initially thought to be a drone sighting in its airspace on Sunday, leading to the temporary closure of Vilnius airport and the dispatch of a NATO fighter jet, turned out to be a group of birds. The National Crisis Management Centre of Lithuania confirmed that the air alert was lifted and the airport resumed operations in just 38 minutes after the NATO jet visually confirmed the situation.
The Centre explained that initial radar data can sometimes mistake bird formations for drones, leading to false alarms. The summoned jet originated from Siauliai in northern Lithuania, where the Italian air force is currently stationed as part of the NATO Baltic Air Defence mission.
Concerns have been rising due to military drones trespassing into the airspace of Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, hinting at potential spillover effects from the conflict in Ukraine towards NATO’s northern borders with Russia. Fortunately, the Vilnius marathon, which was ongoing in the capital, continued without interruption, as confirmed by event organizers.
In a separate incident in August, a Leipzig/Halle Airport staff member discovered a drone with an unidentified explosive device within the cargo operations zone, as reported by German investigators.
