Belgium’s air traffic ground to a halt on Tuesday night after unauthorised drones were spotted near two of the country’s busiest airports, Brussels and Liege, prompting temporary shutdowns and widespread delays.
The first sighting occurred near Brussels Airport around 8pm (19:00 GMT), followed shortly by another at Liege Airport, one of Europe’s major cargo hubs, Belgium’s public broadcaster RTBF reported.
Both airports suspended operations for an hour, reopened, and then shut down again around 10pm (21:00 GMT) after a second sighting before finally resuming normal activity at 11pm (22:00 GMT).
Brussels Airport warned passengers that disruptions could continue into Wednesday, with dozens of flights cancelled or delayed. According to FlightAware, at least 59 flights were cancelled and 43 delayed, with several rerouted to nearby airports.
Belgian Interior Minister Bernard Quintin confirmed an investigation was under way.
“We cannot accept that our airports are disrupted by unauthorised drone flights. This requires a coordinated, national response,” he said.
The incidents follow Saturday’s alarming drone activity near the Kleine Brogel military base, which hosts nuclear-capable aircraft. Defence Minister Theo Francken said the drones appeared to be “clearly commanded and targeted”, operating too high to be jammed and evading pursuit by both helicopter and police units.
Since September, a wave of mysterious drone sightings has been reported near civilian and military sites in Denmark, Germany, and Norway.
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