DRAMA FOR “AIR SERBIA” PASSENGERS ON A FLIGHT TO SAINT PETERSBURG: Returned twice due to drones, in Finland almost ran off the runway!

An “Air Serbia” flight from Belgrade to Saint Petersburg, after two unsuccessful attempts to reach its destination, ended with an incident during takeoff in Helsinki, one of the passengers told Russian media.

According to him, the first flight on March 26 was diverted while still on the approach to Russia.

“The airline announced that the airport was closed. We made four circles around Saint Petersburg, which lasted about half an hour, and then we returned to Belgrade, without waiting for the sky to open. There were no problems with the plane,” said the passenger.

The second flight on March 27 also did not end with a landing in Saint Petersburg.

“The airport was closed due to drone attacks. The plane circled for about 15 minutes, after which the pilot announced that he was flying to Helsinki because there was little fuel,” stated the passenger.

The incident occurred during an attempt to take off from the Finnish airport for Belgrade.

“It was the second plane JU4124 after refueling. The plane began to accelerate, a bang was heard, an impact was felt. Then it tilted to the left side and abruptly turned 180 degrees. We had the feeling that we almost ran off the runway,” stated the interlocutor.

Serbiasta Pietariin matkalla olleet kaksi lentokonetta laskeutuivat aamuyöstä varakenttänä olleelle @HelsinkiAirport, Pietarin lentokentän ollessa tilapäisesti suljettuna. Tankkauksen jälkeen toinen kone pääsi jatkamaan matkaa, toisen jäädessä teknisen syyn vuoksi Hki-Vantaalle. pic.twitter.com/lHQ8cVmCyW
— Merivartiosto – SLMV (@Merivartiosto) March 28, 2026

The passengers were frightened; screams were heard. Some stood up and demanded an immediate disembarkation. A strong smell of fuel and burning rubber was felt in the cabin, he stated.

“The Finnish airport brought in special equipment; the plane was towed from the runway. Then we were evacuated by buses. We spent about 30–40 more minutes in the plane after the incident. There were no injuries,” the passenger said.

Pulkovo Airport in Saint Petersburg is located nine miles south of the city center and about 650 miles north of the Ukrainian border, but the city and the surrounding Leningrad region have been targets of recent drone activities. Saint Petersburg is an entry point for Russian oil exports in the Baltic region, so by targeting the Ust-Luga and Primorsk terminals, Kyiv continues a strategy to weaken the Kremlin’s economy.

Finland has also felt other consequences of the war between Russia and Ukraine near its borders. The Nordic country shares an 835-mile border with Russia, which mostly passes through forests and sparsely populated areas, from the Baltic Sea to the Arctic Ocean. The border is strictly controlled by the Finnish Border Guard, especially since the beginning of the full Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and is marked by blue-and-white (Finland) and green-and-red (Russia) signaling.

Finland is building a 124-mile fence along parts of its border with Russia.