airBaltic adjusts schedules at VNO to avoid balloon-related disruptions
airBaltic assured that there would be minimal impact on its passengers flying out of Vilnius Airport.
airBaltic has confirmed that the airline has adjusted the arrival times of some flights at Vilnius Airport (VNO), with the carrier saying the decision was made in response to the recent airspace closures due to contraband balloons entering from Belarus.
In a statement to The Engine Cowl, airBaltic confirmed that due to the “recent operational disruptions caused by temporary Lithuanian airspace closures, airBaltic has decided to adjust the timing of two flight services to minimize operational risk and maintain safe, reliable performance.”
The Latvian airline, which also bases several aircraft at VNO, said it would adjust the landing times of two flights: BT 920 from Kraków John Paul II International Airport (KRK) to VNO will land at 17:40 local time (UTC +2) instead of 23:55, and BT 928 from Munich Airport (MUC) to VNO.
airBaltic noted that it will only change the landing time of BT 928 on Saturdays, when the itinerary has a scheduled landing time of 22:15 at VNO.
“These adjustments will take effect from November 20, 2025,” airBaltic stated, detailing that around "20 flights have been affected by these airspace restrictions in recent weeks."
“By advancing the arrival times of later-evening flights, airBaltic ensures that aircraft reach their destinations before any potential airspace restrictions, thereby reducing the risk of delays or cancellations.”
airBaltic assured that the impact on its customers would be “minimal,” since it only adjusted the scheduled arrival times and not the days of the flights.
Incidentally, I am also one of the affected passengers, since I am scheduled to fly from KRK to VNO in December. The impact, at least subjectively, is indeed minimal. Non-existent, even.
The Latvian carrier is one of the many airlines that have been affected by ground stops at VNO and sometimes Kaunas Airport (KUN) throughout October. (airBaltic is scheduled to begin operations from KUN to Riga Airport (RIX) on March 30, 2026.)
Lithuanian officials had stopped operations of the airports – mostly VNO, though – due to contraband balloons being launched from Belarus throughout the last month, including on October 4, October 21, October 24, October 25, October 26, and October 30.
The stops typically began after 21:00 and lasted until the early morning hours of the next day, affecting dozens of flights and thousands of passengers. On October 30, Lithuanian Airports (Lietuvos Oro Uostai, LTOU) said that it has been preparing a legal case to recover the losses of the balloon-related disruptions, which “have not yet been quantified, but it is clear that significant direct and indirect damage has been done to the state, passengers, Lithuanian Airports, airlines, and other partners.”
According to Cirium’s Diio Mi, on November 5, for example, there are at least two arriving flights that are scheduled to land at VNO after midnight. Then, after 21:00, there are at least 10 flights scheduled to leave or arrive at VNO, which typically does not include charter flights operated on behalf of tour operators.
Out of the 4.8 million passengers that arrived or left VNO in 2024, 854,833 were on non-scheduled international flights. The data does not include transferring travelers, of which there were 138,503, according to LTOU data.
Rytis Beresnevicius
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