Flights resumed at the airport in Catania, Italy, in late afternoon. Until now, traffic had been suspended due to another eruption of Etna. The airport was covered in a thick layer of volcanic ash.
On the night from Wednesday to Thursday, the highest volcano in Europe threw out a ten-kilometer-high fountain of lava and smoke. In the morning, Etna began to calm down, but the eruption did not remain without impact on the operations of the airport in Catania, near which the volcano is located.
The airport has resumed operations
On Thursday late afternoon, it was possible to gradually resume flight traffic at the airport. It was necessary to clean up a thick layer of volcanic ash from the airport runway. Due to the suspension of Catania-Fontanarossa Vincenzo Bellini Airport, many flights were redirected to Palermo. After 6 p.m., flight traffic was restored, but is still limited to two arrivals per hour. Later in the day, it will increase to six per hour. The airport management asks passengers to check the status of their flight with their airlines.
Etna, a 3,330-meter-high volcano in Sicily, is the highest volcanic cone in Europe and one of the most active in the world. It has the longest documented eruption history of any volcano, with the first records dating back to 425 BC.
Reuters, tvnmeteo.pl, PAP
Main image source: Reuters