Lublin Airport, Poland. Photo: Shutterstock For the second time in less than a month, airports in Poland have been closed to aircraft traffic for about an hour. According to a statement from the country's Polish Air Navigation Services Agency, "due to the need to ensure the freedom of operation of military aviation, airports in Rzeszow and Lublin have temporarily suspended air operations."
At approximately 06:30 AM (GMT), the airports reopened to civilian traffic and activity returned to normal without significant delays in the flight schedule. As noted, this is the second closure event in a month. The previous one occurred at the end of January.
Earlier, the Armed Forces Operational Command issued an official statement stating that "due to Russian aviation activity carrying out strikes on Ukrainian territory, the Polish Army has begun operations in the area. In accordance with procedures, the Army's Operational Command has activated the necessary forces and resources at its disposal."
The Polish military command announced that "ground-based air defense systems and radars are in a state of readiness to protect the airspace, especially in areas adjacent to threatened areas." They added that "the operational command is monitoring the current situation, and its forces and resources subordinate to it remain ready for immediate response."