Moscow’s Domodedovo Airport was thrown into confusion Thursday after a stray blimp hovered over a runway for half an hour, the tabloid Lifenews.ru reported, although the airport denied any intrusion into its airspace.
The blimp, apparently a weather balloon initially stationed not far from Domodedovo, was carried off by a gust of wind, the report said.
An unidentified air traffic controller was quoted as saying the blimp hindered their work, although sunny weather allowed the pilots to spot and skirt the dirigible. The airport requested help from the Emergency Situations Ministry and the air defense forces, but both said they had no means to remove the blimp, the operator said.
The balloon eventually drifted away toward the neighboring town of Klimovsk, the report said.
Domodedovo’s press service said there was no blimp over the runway and no flight delays, RIA-Novosti reported.
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