Ferry News Archive
Scottish & N Irish airspace to close on Wednesday from 0700
Date: 04 May 2010 22:55 Source: BBCAirspace over Scotland and Northern Ireland will be closed from 0700 BST on Wednesday due to volcanic ash, the Civil Aviation Authority has said.
It warned airports in the north-west of England and North Wales could also be affected as the cloud moved south.
It follows flight disruptions in the Irish Republic, Northern Ireland and Scotland's Hebrides on Tuesday.
Ash is drifting from the same Icelandic volcano that caused flights to be halted for six days in April.
A CAA spokesman said: "Met Office forecasts show that levels of ash in the atmosphere over Scotland and Northern Ireland will exceed the concentrations that engine manufacturers have agreed are safe for operations.
"Unfortunately, this means that the CAA anticipates all Scottish and Northern Ireland airports will be closed from 7am local time tomorrow.
'Become stronger'
"The forecasts also show that it is likely that the ash cloud will continue to move south, potentially affecting airports in the north-west of England and north Wales tomorrow," he said.
He said the situation was "dynamic" but the Met Office said ash over UK airspace had increased in density because emissions from the Icelandic volcano had "become stronger", resulting in the Met Office forecasts of "No Fly Zone" locations being extended further south.
Passengers planning to travel to and from the affected airports have been advised to check that their flight is still running.
Meanwhile, budget airline EasyJet announced that flights due to depart from Scotland and Northern Ireland before 0900 BST on Wednesday would be cancelled.
The return of the ash cloud caused the closure of airspace in Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic between 0700 BST and 1300 BST on Tuesday.
Airspace shut over Scotland's Hebrides at 1800 BST on Monday also reopened shortly after 1300 BST. It affected Tiree, Barra and Benbecula airports plus Campbeltown in Argyll.
Hundreds of flights were cancelled on Tuesday.
'Over-cautious'
Flights over Europe were banned last month because of fears of the effect of volcanic ash on plane engines.
The decision to lift the restrictions followed safety tests that showed the engines could cope in areas of low-density ash.
The fresh disruption on Tuesday came as European Union transport ministers met in Brussels to agree measures they hoped would help prevent further disruption to air travel as a result of volcanic ash.
The steps include speeding up current plans to integrate Europe's airspace, creating a "single European regulator for a single European sky".
The meeting came after criticism from the airline industry that governments took an over-cautious approach to the ash cloud crisis last month, grounding flights unnecessarily.
Flights from the UK and continental Europe flying across the airspace have not been affected.
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