For the second day in a row, the country’s second-largest airport had to temporarily suspend all operations, after multiple drones had already brought air traffic to a halt on Thursday evening (October 2nd).
The Federal Police reported two drone sightings on Friday in the area of the airport’s northern and southern runways. Officers spotted the drones shortly before 11:00 PM. “The drones departed immediately, before they could be identified,” a spokesperson stated. Operations slowly resumed in the early morning hours, leaving thousands of passengers stranded overnight at the airport in Erdinger Moos.
According to the airport operator, 23 arriving flights were diverted and a further 12 were canceled on Friday evening. Forty-six scheduled departures could not take off, affecting a total of 6,500 passengers. Those stranded were provided with amenities on-site. “Field beds were set up, and blankets, drinks, and snacks were distributed,” the airport’s website reported.
Overnight, groups of stranded travelers gathered with their luggage in front of the departure boards, trying to figure out their next steps, as a dpa reporter noted. Others sought rest on seating benches, while photos from the scene showed some passengers sleeping on the terminal floor.
“We were sitting on the plane and saw it live that we couldn’t take off,” said passenger Nicole Schmalfuß, who was trying to fly to Catania, in an interview with the news agency Vifogra. “On one hand, it’s frightening because you hear about this happening more and more often. But on the other hand, I’m absolutely furious at the person or people doing this because I just don’t understand why,” she added.
Schmalfuß was critical of the support provided at the airport. “Well-informed? I don’t think so. Not at all. And support—what support?” Another passenger from Salzburg, who was due to fly to Spain at 6:00 AM, commented, “Uncertainty is never pleasant.”
Munich Airport announced on Saturday morning that flight operations were gradually resuming from 7:00 AM. “Capacity is now being ramped up step by step,” an airport spokesperson told dpa. The first aircraft were already able to take off and land again. Passengers are still advised to check the status of their flight with their airline before heading to the airport. The ripple effects are expected to last. “There will be delays in operations throughout the day,” the airport announced on its website.
This incident follows a significant disruption on Thursday evening and into the early hours of Friday, when drones of unknown origin had already severely impacted operations at Germany’s second-largest airport. Numerous flights were canceled or diverted to nearby airports like Nuremberg or Stuttgart, affecting approximately 3,000 passengers. Hundreds of people spent the night on field beds set up in the terminals. Operations had largely returned to normal throughout Friday before the latest incident occurred.
The incident on Thursday prompted reactions from numerous politicians, who called for consequences. Bavaria’s Minister-President, Markus Söder (CSU), suggested the possibility of shooting down drones quickly. The Interior Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia, Herbert Reul (CDU), demanded a “rapidly functioning drone defense system.”
Source: jr
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