DHL reported major disruption to its Brussels Airport operations on Tuesday evening after drone sightings twice forced the closure of national airspace just before the company’s crucial night shift began.
Of the 47 scheduled flights, 23 arrivals and 24 departures, 19 had to be cancelled or diverted. Twelve outbound flights could not operate, grounding roughly one in four urgent shipments. The impact was particularly severe for around 2,000 medical consignments, including custom-made stents, medicines for rare diseases and radioactive isotopes used in cancer treatment.
"Of the shipments that did depart with delays, some will certainly not reach their final destination on time," DHL said, citing missed connections at other hubs. In total, 28 flights managed to depart or land overnight, with average delays of two hours.
DHL said it is adding eight extra flights today and deploying larger aircraft on key routes to clear the backlog. Sorting teams are working extended shifts to get all time-sensitive shipments moving as quickly as possible.
The company's Brussels hub mainly serves as an export centre for goods transported by truck from Belgium, northern France and the Netherlands. Nearly all packages were processed and prepared for departure, but one in four shipments remained grounded due to the airspace closure.
