Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on November 7, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
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Liege airport in Belgium temporarily halted flights due to a drone sighting, marking the second such incident this week and raising aviation safety concerns.
By Alessandro Parodi and Benoit Van Overstraeten
BRUSSELS (Reuters) -Belgium's Liege airport has resumed flights after a temporary halt due to a drone sighting, the country's air traffic control service said on Friday in the second such incident this week.
The Skeyes air traffic control service said it received a report of a drone being spotted over the airport around 06:30 GMT, leading to a closure of the airport for about 30 minutes.
"We have to take every report seriously", Kurt Verwilligen, a spokesperson for the service said. He added flights had resumed.
Drones spotted flying over airports in the capital Brussels and in Liege, in the country's east, forced on Tuesday the diversion of many incoming planes and the grounding of some due to depart.
Sightings of drones over airports and military bases have become a constant problem in Belgium in recent days, and have caused major disruptions across Europe in recent months.
They have forced temporary closures of airports in several countries including Sweden on Thursday. Some officials have blamed the incidents on "hybrid warfare" by Russia. Moscow has denied any connection with the incidents.
The Belgian government called an emergency meeting of key government ministers and security chiefs on Thursday to address what the defence minister called a coordinated attack.
(Reporting by Alessandro Parodi and Benoit Van Overstraeten; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)
Air traffic control is a service provided to manage the safe and orderly flow of air traffic in the skies and at airports, ensuring aircraft can take off, land, and navigate safely.
Drone technology refers to the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that can be controlled remotely or autonomously, often used for surveillance, delivery, and various commercial applications.
Aviation safety encompasses the measures and protocols implemented to ensure the safety of aircraft operations, including regulations, training, and technology to prevent accidents and incidents.
Drone sightings at airports can lead to temporary closures, flight delays, and increased security measures, impacting overall air traffic and safety protocols.
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