Sweden's largest airport closed due to unidentified drones

The largest airport in Sweden, near Stockholm, temporarily halted flight arrivals and departures for several hours due to unidentified drones.

According to Swedish Television website SVT, the Swedish Civil Aviation Authority reported that early on 9 September, unidentified drones were spotted in the area around Arlanda Airport – at least four drones of various sizes but of unknown type. 

The decision to suspend airport operations was made due to unidentified drones, leading to five flights being redirected to nearby airports in Nyköping and Gothenburg at 02:00. 

Operations resumed at 03:30, and the police have launched an investigation into the disruption of airport services.

"We suspect it was a deliberate act, but we cannot say with what intent. For confidentiality reasons regarding the investigation, we do not wish to go into details," said police spokesperson Daniel Wikdahl.

The Swedish Armed Forces confirmed that they are aware of the incident and are working with the airport administration.

On 29 August, the Swedish Security Police announced an increased threat of Russian sabotage activities within the country, and defence industry companies have already reported several suspicious incidents.

A Russian military drone crashed in the east of Latvia on Saturday, 7 September.

Romania confirmed that a Shahed drone had entered its territory during another Russian attack on Ukrainian cities on the night of 7-8 September, prompting the deployment of F-16 fighter jets.