Etna Ash Prompts Catania Airport Flight Suspension

Catania Airport suspended arrivals and departures on Sunday, September 27, after renewed activity at Mount Etna sent ash into the air and weather conditions disrupted operations. Airport operator SAC announced the shutdown, initially set to run until noon and later extended to 11:59 p.m. The available information does not confirm when flights resumed. An ash plume from Etna’s northeast crater reached an estimated altitude of about four kilometres, according to measurements attributed to Italy’s National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology. A red aviation warning was also issued. The restrictions followed earlier limits on airport capacity and diversions to other Sicilian airports as conditions deteriorated. About 10 flights had been diverted before operations were suspended, with five sent to Palermo, three to Trapani and two to Comiso, according to one report. The disruption also affected Brussels Airlines passengers. The carrier’s Catania-to-Brussels flight scheduled for Saturday was cancelled, leaving about 140 passengers waiting to return. The airline said they might travel back on Sunday or Monday as it reorganised affected services.