Several unidentified drones shut down airspace over Copenhagen Airport on Monday night, prompting concerns that Russia could be behind the flyover above Scandinavia’s largest airport. There was no indication that the operators of two to three drones intended to cause harm to anyone, police said, and the drones disappeared after several hours. But the incident caused a major disruption to air traffic in and out of the airport.
While it wasn’t immediately clear who was behind the flyover, Denmark’s prime minister and NATO’s secretary-general said that Russian involvement couldn’t be ruled out. And now Denmark – already on edge because of its proximity to Russia – will join a group of front-line countries Friday to discuss the European Union’s plans for a “drone wall.”
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called it “the most serious attack on Danish critical infrastructure to date.”
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said that it was “too early to say” whether Russia was involved, while Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov rejected suggestions that Moscow could be involved.
‘A capable actor’
Officials chose not to shoot down the drones because the risk was too great because of the airport being full of passengers, the planes on the runways and nearby fuel depots, Jes Jespersen, senior police inspector of the Copenhagen Police, said during a news conference.
Jespersen called the operators “a capable actor” and said they seemed intent on showing off their skills and possibly practicing their techniques. The drones’ lights reportedly turned on and off and appeared to engage in different flight patterns.
“It all indicates that you are not out to attack anyone, but you are out to show off and maybe to practice,” he said of the operators.
The two to three drones appeared to have flown many kilometers (miles) to reach the airport. Investigators are looking at how the drones reached the airport – whether it was by land or possibly by boat.
Flights at the airport resumed early Tuesday, though delays and cancellations continued throughout the day.
Drone in Norway
Meanwhile, a drone incident the same evening at the airport in Oslo, Norway, forced all traffic to move to one runway, according to Norwegian broadcaster NRK. Traffic later returned to normal and it’s unclear who was responsible.
Jespersen said nothing immediately linked the Oslo and Copenhagen incidents, but officials would look into any potential ties.
In 2023, London’s Gatwick Airport closed its runway for almost an hour after a drone was reported nearby. In December 2018, more than 140,000 travellers were stranded or delayed during the Christmas season after dozens of drone sightings shut down Gatwick for parts of three consecutive days.
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