Aalborg Airport in Denmark closed again, suspected hybrid drone attack

2025-09-26 12:20:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Suspected drone activity disrupted Denmark’s Aalborg airport for the second time in 24 hours on Thursday evening, after Copenhagen notified NATO and the EU of another hybrid attack.
The incursion forced the airport, which is used for both commercial and military flights, to close from 11 p.m. to 12 a.m. after an object was spotted in the sky.
It is the latest instance of drone activity that Danish authorities have deemed a well-organized hybrid attack, raising further concerns about security in northern Europe amid increasing incursions into Russian airspace.

The aim of these actions was to sow fear and division, Danish Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard said on Thursday, adding that the country would seek additional means to neutralize drones, including proposing legislation to allow infrastructure owners to shoot them down.

Danish intelligence officials further stated that the risk of Russian espionage and sabotage in Denmark is high.
"We have seen this in other parts of Europe and we should expect to see it in Denmark as well," said the head of the Danish Security Intelligence Service, Finn Borch, at a press conference on Thursday evening.
However, authorities said there was no immediate danger to the public.

European drone wall under construction

Earlier this week, flights were grounded for several hours at Aalborg Airport after drone sightings began shortly before 10 p.m. on Wednesday and ended just before 1 a.m. on Thursday.
Three airports in Esbjerg, Sønderborg and Skrydstrup were also affected. Skrydstrup is an air base that is home to some of the Danish military's fighter jets.
The drones appeared to be flying around the airports with their navigation lights on, making them visible, but authorities decided not to try to shoot down the drones, police said. Further details were not immediately available.

The latest drone activity comes just days after a similar incident at Copenhagen Airport, carried out by what police are calling a “skillful actor.”
Drones disrupted flights in the Danish capital for hours on Monday evening, raising concerns that Russia could be behind the flight over the region’s largest airport.
While it was not immediately clear who was behind the act, authorities, including NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, said a Russian involvement could not be ruled out.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called the Copenhagen incident “the most serious attack on critical Danish infrastructure to date.”

Frederiksen said she was in touch with Rutte about increasing security.
“We agreed that NATO will work with Denmark on what we can do together to ensure security and defense,” she wrote on the social platform X.
Denmark will join a group of neighboring countries on Friday to discuss European Union plans for a drone wall, in what European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called “the foundation of credible defense.”
Security concerns in Europe have escalated as the number of drone incursions linked to Moscow continues to rise.
On Tuesday, NATO warned Russia that it would use all means to defend against any further violations of its airspace after the downing of Russian drones over Poland earlier this month and an incursion by Russian fighter jets into Estonian airspace last week.
Speaking ahead of the latest drone sightings in Denmark, French President Emmanuel Macron argued that NATO countries would have to react “stronger” to Russian interference. He did not elaborate on a possible response.
“We cannot allow the idea to take root that Poland, Estonia and Romania are in a weak situation because the next step would be Germany and then us,” Macron said in an interview with broadcasters France 24 and RFI.
Russia has denied any involvement in the drone incidents./ CNA, translated by Euronews