(MENAFN) Berlin Brandenburg Airport ground to a halt Friday night after an unauthorized drone was reported hovering near flight paths, forcing a two-hour suspension of operations before air traffic controllers cleared aircraft to resume takeoffs and landings, according to local news outlets.

The disruption began around 8 p.m. local time (1900 GMT) when an eyewitness alerted authorities to the unmanned aerial vehicle's presence, triggering an immediate shutdown of the northern runway, a German news agency reported, citing a police spokesperson. Officers in ground patrol units subsequently verified the drone sighting but failed to track down the aircraft despite search efforts.

The security breach triggered a cascade of flight disruptions across European routes. Scheduled departures bound for Basel, Oslo and Barcelona were grounded, while arriving aircraft faced delays and rerouting. Law enforcement launched a helicopter to sweep the area, while Germany's Federal Aviation Office coordinated the emergency response.

By Saturday morning, the airport had fully restored its flight schedule with no lingering impacts from the previous night's incident.

This marks the latest in a troubling pattern of drone intrusions plaguing German aviation hubs. Munich Airport endured multiple closures throughout October following similar unauthorized drone activity, grounding more than 100 flights and stranding nearly 10,000 travelers. Comparable security breaches have emerged across Scandinavia and Eastern Europe, with Denmark, Norway and Poland all reporting drone incidents.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz raised alarm bells in October, suggesting the escalating drone incursions across the continent may constitute "espionage activities" and represent deliberate efforts to "disrupt public order."

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