BERLIN: Germany's Munich airport said early on Friday that drone sightings on Thursday evening had forced air traffic control to suspend operations, leading to the cancellation of 17 flights and disrupting travel for nearly 3,000 passengers.

Another 15 arriving flights were diverted to Stuttgart, Nuremberg, Vienna and Frankfurt, the airport said in a statement, marking the latest drone disruption to European aviation after sightings temporarily shut airports in Denmark and Norway last week.

German air traffic control officials restricted flight operations at Munich airport from 10:18 p.m. (2018 GMT) on Thursday and later suspended them altogether due to several drone sightings, the airport added.

The city was already placed on edge this week when its popular Oktoberfest was closed temporarily due to a bomb threat and the discovery of explosives in a residential building in the city's north.

Munich airport reopened on Friday morning after being closed overnight due to drone sightings, a Reuters witness said.

Articles tagged with "Closure"

Munich airport reopens after drone sightings halt flights overnight