Impact on air transport
The presence of drones is enough to affect air transport, as airports will limit flights for safety reasons.
“Drone incidents, no matter where or when they take place, undoubtedly have an impact both on airports and airlines, disrupting passengers and burdening the sector with unforeseen costs,” said Ourania Georgoutsakou, managing director for the lobby Airlines for Europe.
Because drones are small and hard to spot, some of these incidents are very difficult to verify. That was the case in December 2018, when London Gatwick Airport suffered a 33-hour disruption prompted by numerous drone sightings, which were never proven or photographed.
Only between July and September 2024, SkeyDrone, a firm that monitors Brussels Airport’s airspace, detected 180 unauthorized drones close to runways and 84 in a more vulnerable “red zone.” However, none of the incidents caused a flight disruption.
Munich Airport had to shut down on the night of Oct. 2 after several drones were spotted, causing 17 cancellations and 15 diversions. German air traffic control company DFS told POLITICO that the airport experienced eight other drone incursions in the first nine months of 2025.
“Not every drone appearance is automatically a major security risk,” said Jan-Christoph Oetjen, a German member of the European Parliament from Renew Europe.
“This topic is around for a while now and it got attention due to the geopolitical tensions,” he added.