Mount Etna volcanic eruption disrupts flights at Catania international airport

06.08.2024 - 01:31 / euronews.com / Ruth Wright

Travel to and from the Italian island of Sicily is currently disrupted due to a volcanic eruption.

Catania international airport has delayed, cancelled and diverted some flights due to an eruption from Mount Etna billowing smoke into the air. The smoke affects visibility for pilots.

Nearby towns have also been covered in black volcanic ash after the Voragine crater began erupting last night.

Catania is on the east coast of Sicily and at the foot of Mount Etna, Europe's most active volcano.

Some flights have been cancelled while others have been diverted to other airports on the island, such as Palermo and Comiso.

The airport's management has advised passengers to contact their airlines for information on their flights.

You can check airline's apps or websites for the most up to date information, as well as their social media channels. Also keep an eye on the email with which you made the booking as your airline or booking platform may contact you to advise you of changes.

Although no official numbers have been issued, the airport's departure boards show delays of up to three hours on some flights.

There are currently five domestic departures have been cancelled and two international flights to Warsaw and Copenhagen are also cancelled.

Some arrivals and departures have been diverted to other airports in Sicily - read on for more information.

There was a restrictions of six arrivals per hour this morning but that has now been lifted.

Catania is Sicily's most popular airport with international tourists, with the island at the height of the summer season.

Check your flight status here.

Some rrivals and departures are being diverted to Palermo and Comiso airports.

Don't forget that Sicily is the biggest island in the Mediterranean. It is twice the size of Cyprus, a country in its own right, and it takes at least eight hours to drive all the way from east to west. So the diversion airport may not be near Catania.

Comiso airport is a two-hour drive from Catania airport; both are on the east of the island.

Whereas Palermo and Trapani are on the west of the island therefore four-five hours drive from Catania.

There are car hire companies at Sicily's airports and there are also coaches between the main cities.

During previous travel disruption, airports or airlines have arranged free coaches to take passengers to the airport they were due to land at or depart from. You may only be able to find information on these free transfers once you arrive at the airport.

Airlines are required to offer you another flight or a refund is a flight is cancelled or delayed by more than three hours.

However, this is only when they could have prevented the disruption. In the case of a volcanic eruption, it is not their fault.

However in most