Up to 25 small hot-air balloons, some carrying smuggled cigarettes, forced Vilnius Airport to shut down late on Saturday.
The balloons entered Lithuanian airspace, delaying 30 flights and affecting some 6,000 passengers for hours.
Operations resumed at 4am (1.50am GMT) on Sunday, according to Lithuania‘s National Crisis Management Centre.
The breach occurs amid heightened European alert following an unprecedented scale of intrusions into Nato airspace in September.
Some officials interpret these incidents as Moscow testing the alliance’s response against Russia.
Lithuania and its Baltic neighbours are particularly concerned, especially after a Russian-made Gerbera drone, originating from Belarus, crashed in Vilnius County on 10 July.
Another crashed at a military training ground on 28 July and was found a week later. The military later said it was carrying an explosive device.
After those incidents, the parliament voted to allow the armed forces to shoot down any unmanned drone violating its airspace.
18,000 packs of smuggled cigarettes recovered
Two of the balloons flew above Vilnius Airport, according to spokesperson Darius Buta. More than two dozen reached the wider Vilnius County.
The balloons were recorded flying between roughly 8.45pm Saturday and 4.30am Sunday.
Border police recovered 11 balloons and some 18,000 packs of smuggled cigarettes in various locations, Mr Buta said.
Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital, is located about 25 miles west of the border with Russian ally Belarus.
Belarusian smugglers are increasingly using the balloons, which are much cheaper than drones, for smuggling cigarettes into the European Union, Mr Buta said.
Similar incidents, but with fewer balloons, were reported in August.
In 2024, 966 hot-air balloons entering from Belarus were intercepted by Lithuanian authorities. There have been 544 recorded this year.
“Both smuggling balloons and drones are criminal activities, but not as provocations or acts of sabotage,” Mr Buta said.
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