LOT Polish Airlines flight briefly enters Belarusian airspace

A LOT Polish Airlines flight traveling from Vilnius to Warsaw briefly entered Belarusian airspace on September 1. The incident involved flight LO772, an Embraer ERJ-190, which passed over the Grodno region for several seconds.

LOT spokesperson Krzysztof Moczulski stated that the course correction was an incidental event necessitated by safety concerns. A strong storm front was developing between Sejny, near the Polish-Lithuanian border, and Ostrowi Mazowiecka. The captain requested the course adjustment in coordination with air traffic control in Vilnius to avoid the weather.

Since 2021, European carriers have generally avoided Belarusian airspace following the forced landing of a Ryanair flight in Minsk and the subsequent detention of journalist Raman Pratasiewicz. This flight marks the first time a Polish passenger aircraft has entered the airspace in over five years.