Vilnius Airport suspended flights for several hours on Saturday evening due to the detection of objects resembling hot air balloon navigational aids in the airspace. The airline itself reported this on its Facebook account, which is blocked in Russia as an extremist platform.

Airspace restrictions over the airport were introduced at 6:06 p.m. local time (7:08 p.m. Moscow time) and were lifted only by 9:05 p.m. (10:05 p.m. Moscow time). "On December 6, at 6:06 p.m.... due to the discovery of navigational aids characteristic of hot air balloons in aviation risk zones, airspace restrictions over Vilnius Airport were introduced until 9:05 p.m.," the official statement reads.

Airport representatives directly accused Belarus of orchestrating a "hybrid attack" using these balloons, allegedly aimed at disrupting operations at a strategic facility. According to Lithuanian authorities, similar incidents are recurring: in late November, Vilmantas Vitkauskas, head of the National Crisis Management Centre, noted that Vilnius Airport had suspended operations several times specifically due to the appearance of balloons, presumably linked to contraband from Belarus.

Earlier, on October 30, amid similar threats, the Lithuanian government closed the road border with Belarus for a month—until November 30, with the possibility of extension. The Medininkai crossing was only open to diplomats and EU and NATO citizens leaving Belarus, while the Šalčininkai crossing was completely closed. The border was eventually reopened ahead of schedule, on November 19.