Given the regular disruptions to air traffic in Vilnius caused by balloons launched by smugglers, Finnish airline Finnair has decided to cancel its evening flight to the Lithuanian capital.
Lithuanian Airports (LTOU) spokesman Tadas Vasiliauskas confirmed to Lithuanian public media that the airline had informed airport officials of its decision on December 3. Vasiliauskas said that, given the air traffic restrictions at certain times caused by the Belarusian hybrid attacks, Finnair is canceling its evening flight to Vilnius. It is one of four flights that it operates daily from Helsinki to Vilnius.
The decision applies to only one flight, and Finnair has announced that it will be in effect until the end of February 2026. Vasilius added that other regular flights to Helsinki will continue.
Latvian airline airBaltic has also made changes to its Vilnius service
– the times of two flights have been adjusted so that they are less affected by the air traffic restrictions imposed by cigarette smugglers. The flight from Krakow to Vilnius, which previously landed in Lithuania shortly after midnight, has now been rescheduled and will land at the Lithuanian capital’s airport at 5:40 p.m. The flight from Munich will also land in Vilnius in the early evening, instead of closer to midnight.
Lithuania has regularly suspended air traffic at Vilnius airport in recent months. This is because weather balloons used by smugglers and launched from Belarus are in the air near the airport. Officials have called them hybrid attacks by the Belarusian government that threaten Lithuanian civil aviation. Vilnius Airport was closed 14 times in October and November, and Kaunas Airport was also temporarily closed once.
During this time, almost 320 flights were canceled or diverted, affecting more than 45,000 passengers.
Read the whole article in English here: https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/2765092/finnair-cancels-evening-flights-to-vilnius-over-balloon-disruptions
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