Denmark Aalborg airport closes after drone reports in airspace

Denmark Aalborg airport in the north of the country was closed after unauthorized drones were seen in its airspace, local authorities.

Three other smaller airports in the southern region of the country – ESBJERG, Sønderborg and Skrydstrup – also reported a drone activity, but were not closed.

The incident comes after the country’s Copenhagen Airport was forced to close this week earlier due to a drone incursion, which the Prime Minister described as “the most serious attack on Danish infrastructure so far”.

Police said the devices could be seen from the ground, adding that they could not exclude activity being a farce. They were investigating who controlled them and their reason.

Monday, Kastrup Airport in Copenhagen was forced to close several hours after observing a number of drones.

“That said, something about the moments when we live and what we, as a company, must be ready to deal with,” Prime Minister said Frederiksen to journalists.

Russian participation could not be excluded, he added-although the Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov qualified the allegations of “unfounded”.

At least three flights were diverted from Aalborg airport, officials saying that the Danish armed forces were affected because the airport is also used as a military base.

North Jutland police published a statement saying that they were closely monitored in Aalborg, but could not explain the number of drones involved.

“We cannot yet comment on the goal of flying drones in the region, and we cannot say anything about who is the actor behind it,” said chief inspector Jesper Bøjgaard Madsen.

“If we have the opportunity, we will shoot drones,” he added.

The police said that they did not think there was a danger to passengers at the airport or residents, but asked the public to keep their distance from the region.

Addressing the reports of drones in Esbjerg, Sønderborg and Skrydstrup, the police said that they “took the situation seriously”, but could not comment on a reason.

They added that none of the airports had been closed and that there was no danger to the public.

Of the three flights affected in Aalborg, two were sent back to Copenhagen and another in the city of Karup.

The agency which oversees European air traffic control said that arrivals and departures at the airport would be stopped until 06:00, local time (04:00 GMT) on Thursday.

Europe was on alert after several NATO member states reported Russian incursions in their air areas.

Last week, Estonia and Poland asked for a consultation with other NATO members, after the accused of Russia of having violated their airspace in separate incidents.

Romania, another member of NATO, also said that Russian drones had violated its airspace.

Russia denied having violated the airspace of Estonia, while it insisted that the Polish foray was not deliberate. He did not comment on the incident of Romania.

After meeting on Tuesday, NATO published a statement condemning the actions of Russia and warned that it would use “all the necessary military and non -military tools” to defend itself.

“Russia is full responsibility for these actions, which are climbing calculations, risk a calculation error and lives in danger. They must stop,” he said.

NATO secretary general, Mark Rutte, said: “We are a defensive alliance, yes, but we are not naive, so we see what is happening.”

After his speech to the UN, Donald Trump suggested that NATO nations should shoot down Russian planes that have raped their airspace.