Drone chaos at BER: Berlin Airport paralyzed for two hours!

Drone chaos at BER: Berlin Airport paralyzed for two hours!

On Friday evening there were significant disruptions to flight operations at Berlin's BER airport due to a drone sighting. The airport had to suspend flight operations for almost two hours, leading to delays and diversions of flights. Orderly operations resumed on Saturday and there were no further disruptions. To make up for the delays, planes were allowed to take off until 2 a.m. and land all night, which was used by five aircraft. Ground operations remained undisturbed while police, equipped with a helicopter, searched for the flying object. A witness reported the drone at around 8 p.m. Despite an immediate search by the police, the device could no longer be located, which is why the Federal Aviation Authority was contacted to obtain further information.

In total, some flights from Stockholm, Antalya, Helsinki and London were diverted to Berlin. The airport association ADV has described the incidents as a “security wake-up call” and is calling for drone defense to be improved. The number of drone incidents has increased in recent years. By the end of August 2023, 144 obstructions had been registered, compared to 113 in the previous year. Drones are prohibited within a radius of 1.5 kilometers from airports, and violations are punished as dangerous interference with air traffic.

Drone incidents in the focus of research

The German Aerospace Center (DLR) has published current findings on the effects of drone sightings near airports. In collaboration with the Federal Aviation Office (LBA), data on 118 incidents were analyzed last year, nine of which led to interruptions in air traffic. These incidents caused economic damage of around 500,000 euros. The average duration of the full closures was 32 minutes; In one particularly serious case, air traffic was disrupted for over an hour.

Although no flight cancellations were recorded due to the drone incidents, airlines incurred additional costs due to increased fuel consumption and additional landing fees. DLR boss Anke Kaysser-Pyzalla has emphasized the need to document drone sightings at airports more precisely in order to identify operational consequences and economic impacts at an early stage. The documentation practice in German airspace is currently inconsistent.

International drone sightings and their consequences

In October there were numerous flight cancellations in Munich when a drone sighting affected several thousand passengers. Drone incidents have an impact on air traffic not only in Germany. In Denmark and Norway there were several incidents in September that led to airport closures. The most serious incident occurred in December 2018 at London Gatwick Airport, where operations were suspended for 33 hours and economic losses of around €100 million were recorded.

The increasing trend of drone incidents signals the need to invest in the areas of security and infrastructure. The airport association ADV has made it clear that the incident at BER should be an impetus for more comprehensive measures to ensure the safety of air traffic. Given the developments, all stakeholders are required to work on better surveillance and defense of drones to avoid future disruptions.