A severe bout of freezing rain and treacherous ice has brought widespread travel chaos to central and eastern Europe, grounding flights and paralysing rail networks.
Airports Forced to Halt Operations
The icy conditions on Tuesday, 13 January 2026, forced major airports across the region to postpone and cancel flights. Vienna International Airport, a key European hub, temporarily halted all operations. Incoming flights were diverted to other airports including Munich, Frankfurt, Cologne, and Venice, while departures faced significant delays, according to airport spokesperson Peter Kleemann.
The disruptions extended to neighbouring nations. Prague's Vaclav Havel Airport was compelled to restrict arrivals, while Slovakia's main international airport closed for several hours. In Hungary, Transport Minister János Lázár confirmed that "freezing rain and extreme icing conditions" had stopped all traffic at Budapest's Ferenc Liszt International Airport.
Rail and Road Networks Paralyzed
The travel misery was not confined to the skies. Public transport and road networks were severely impacted. Austria's national railway, ÖBB, warned of expected delays in the north and east, including Vienna, and urged passengers to postpone non-essential journeys.
In the Czech Republic, authorities cancelled numerous train and bus services, with passengers at Prague's main station facing delays stretching for hours. The D8 highway to Germany was also closed due to an accident on the German side, where roads were similarly icy.
Budapest's tram services, already recovering from significant snowfall the previous week, were again disrupted by accumulating ice. The capital's transit authority reported widespread issues as the freezing rain continued.
Broader Regional Impact and Forecast
The cold snap's effects were felt across a wide area. In Romania, where heavy snow has fallen over the past week, temperatures were forecast to plunge as low as -13 degrees Celsius, prompting some schools to switch to online learning.
Hungary's Meteorological Service warned of further complications, stating that significant snowfall was likely in the east, while more rain and freezing rain was expected in western parts of the country. The situation underscores the severe travel disruption that such winter weather can cause across the continent's transport infrastructure.
