Drones halt Eindhoven flights hours after Defense fires at drones at Volkel Air Base
Flights at Eindhoven Airport were temporarily suspended Saturday evening after multiple drones were spotted near the airport, nearly three hours after Defense officials had previously shot at drones at Volkel Air Base in Noord-Brabant.
The disruption began around 7 p.m., affecting both civilian and military air traffic at the airport, which doubles as an air force base.
Caretaker Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans confirmed the sighting of multiple drones. “The Ministry of Defense has taken measures, but due to security reasons, it cannot yet share more information about the manner in which it was done,” Brekelmans said on X. He added that the "disruption of air traffic with drones is unacceptable."
A spokesperson for Eindhoven Airport confirmed that no flights departed or landed while the airspace was closed. Six inbound flights were rerouted to Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Brussels, and Weeze in Germany. Two departing flights to Málaga and London remained grounded, with passengers kept on board at Ryanair’s request.
Security staff reportedly escorted stranded travelers out of the terminal shortly after midnight in freezing temperatures. According to Het Parool, passengers expressed surprise, noting that there was no signage indicating that the terminal closed at night.
The connection between the Eindhoven drone sightings and the drones observed at Volkel Air Base on Friday evening remains unclear. At Volkel, air force personnel fired weapons at drones, with Brekelmans reporting five drones initially spotted, followed by an additional ten.
