COPENHAGEN (Reuters) -Norwegian police on Thursday said they had closed an investigation into suspected drone sightings that caused a shutdown of Oslo’s airport in September, citing insufficient evidence that drones had been present.
Both Oslo and Copenhagen airports shut for several hours on September 22-23 after the airspace over the two hubs was closed due to reported drone sightings.
Drones have caused major disruption across Europe in recent months, forcing temporary closures of airports in several countries. Some officials have blamed the incidents on “hybrid warfare” by Russia. Moscow has denied any connection with the incidents.
Norwegian police said they had interviewed airport personnel and reviewed surveillance video as part of a probe, but that the investigation “has been unable to confirm or deny whether drones were actually observed on the night of September 23.”
In the days following the Oslo and Copenhagen incidents, five smaller airports in Denmark, both civilian and military, were also shut temporarily and unidentified drones were observed near military installations, Danish police have said.
The Danish investigation into the drone sightings at Copenhagen airport is also still ongoing, Danish police told Reuters on Thursday.
(Reporting by Louise Breusch Rasmussen; Editing by Terje Solsvik and Conor Humphries)
