Etna’s Ash Forces Sicily’s Main Airport to Halt Flights

Mount Etna’s ongoing eruption has shut down Sicily’s busiest airport, with officials saying flights will stay grounded until at least early Saturday afternoon. The volcanic ash is causing the worst disruption the airport has seen in over two decades.

More than a third of the nearly 2,000 flights scheduled between last Thursday and this Wednesday were cancelled, and another 600 were rerouted. The volcano, Europe’s tallest and most active, sits just 30 kilometres from Catania, raising fresh questions about the airport’s location.

Hundreds of travellers are stranded during the year’s busiest travel week, many waiting to hear if their flights will run. One passenger told Reuters her flight was cancelled twice, first on Wednesday, then again on Friday. The ash has even drifted as far as North Africa.

The rail operator Trenitalia has added six extra trains on the Palermo-Messina-Catania route to help. While passengers usually can claim compensation for major disruptions, volcanic eruptions are often treated as extraordinary circumstances, meaning airlines are not legally required to pay out.