Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on February 17, 2026
1 min readLast updated: February 17, 2026
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Vilnius Airport was closed due to Belarusian weather balloons entering its airspace, marking over 10 closures since October 2025.
HELSINKI, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Lithuania's Vilnius airport has resumed operations after a short closure due to weather balloons from Belarus entering its airspace on Tuesday night, airport operator said.
The airport, located some 30 kilometres (19 miles) from Belarus, has been closed more than 10 times since early October 2025 over similar incidents.
Traffic at the airport was restricted for 75 minutes after the Baltic country's crisis management centre around 1830 GMT notified the airport of weather balloons posing a risk to aviation.
(Reporting by Andrius Sytas and Janis Laizans, writing by Essi Lehto, editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
Crisis management is the process by which an organization deals with a disruptive and unexpected event that threatens to harm the organization or its stakeholders.
Airspace is the portion of the atmosphere controlled by a country above its territory, where aircraft are permitted to operate.
Weather balloons are large balloons filled with gas that carry instruments to collect data about the atmosphere, such as temperature and humidity.
An airport closure occurs when an airport temporarily suspends operations due to various reasons, including weather conditions, security threats, or technical issues.
A crisis management center coordinates responses to emergencies, ensuring that appropriate measures are taken to mitigate risks and manage the situation effectively.
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