On the afternoon and evening of January 13, 2025, Riga Airport experienced multiple incursions by unknown drones hovering for hours over the airport, which were not detected by the existing radar systems. The first drone was visually spotted by a board member of the airport around 17:30 local time. Despite attempts by airport security, the drones remained largely undetected by radar, as the special radar system was absent from the site. This prompted a 30-minute suspension of all takeoffs and landings. The Latvian State Police and State Security Service responded, arriving at the scene later in the evening, by which time multiple drones were observed. Military forces were contacted and mobilized to the airport to deploy electronic warfare equipment capable of neutralizing drones, but this was not ultimately necessary as the drones disappeared. The incident revealed critical gaps in drone detection and response protocols at Riga Airport. Currently, Latvia's legislation does not mandate the airport to install or operate drone detection or neutralization systems; responsibility lies with State Police, which lacks electronic warfare capabilities. NATO and Latvian military officials acknowledged the challenge of countering drone threats without advanced technical support. An ongoing investigation is underway, though authorities express skepticism about identifying the drone pilots. The event exposed serious vulnerabilities in critical infrastructure security amid ongoing regional tensions during the third year of the Ukraine conflict.

On the afternoon and evening of January 13, 2025, Riga Airport experienced multiple incursions by unknown drones hovering for hours over the airport, which were not detected by the existing radar systems. The first drone was visually spotted by a board member of the airport around 17:30 local time. Despite attempts by airport security, the drones remained largely undetected by radar, as the special radar system was absent from the site. This prompted a 30-minute suspension of all takeoffs and landings. The Latvian State Police and State Security Service responded, arriving at the scene later in the evening, by which time multiple drones were observed. Military forces were contacted and mobilized to the airport to deploy electronic warfare equipment capable of neutralizing drones, but this was not ultimately necessary as the drones disappeared. The incident revealed critical gaps in drone detection and response protocols at Riga Airport. Currently, Latvia's legislation does not mandate the airport to install or operate drone detection or neutralization systems; responsibility lies with State Police, which lacks electronic warfare capabilities. NATO and Latvian military officials acknowledged the challenge of countering drone threats without advanced technical support. An ongoing investigation is underway, though authorities express skepticism about identifying the drone pilots. The event exposed serious vulnerabilities in critical infrastructure security amid ongoing regional tensions during the third year of the Ukraine conflict.