Lithuania scrambles fighter jets after unidentified object spotted near Vilnius

Because of the incident, controlled airspace near Vilnius Airport was temporarily closed, and fighter jets were scrambled, the report said.

A yellow-level warning was issued shortly before 10 a.m. local time. The object could not be fully identified, LRT reported.

Vitkauskas said the fighter jets took off and “carried out the appropriate procedures.” Authorities also received reports from residents who said they had seen the object outside Vilnius in the direction of Jonava.

Those reports, however, were not confirmed.

At 10:37 a.m., the air threat was canceled. According to the crisis center chief, the object disappeared from the observation zone and no longer posed a threat, though the search for it continued.

Vitkauskas said it was not yet clear whether the object was a drone. He said some of its parameters pointed to a speed somewhat lower than what is typical for drones.

“If it fell, if it was a drone, it will have to be found. But it was not necessarily a drone,” Vitkauskas said.

He also did not rule out that the detected phenomenon could have been linked to an anomaly or migrating birds.

Lithuanian authorities are still trying to determine the nature of the object and the circumstances of its appearance near Vilnius.

On Sept. 13, residents of Vilnius County received alerts warning of a possible danger. Vilnius Airport temporarily suspended operations, and NATO fighter jets were scrambled.