Skip to main content

Developments in volcanic ash affecting air travel

By the CNN Wire Staff
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
  • British Royal Navy deploys ships to bring home stranded travelers
  • Airspace over northern Italy closed until closed until 8 a.m. (2 a.m. ET) Tuesday
  • European Union forms panel to investigate impact of ash on European economies
  • Flights into and out of Newfoundland, Canada could be affected, Air Canada says

(CNN) -- Here are the latest highlights regarding problems for air travel caused by the volcanic eruption in Iceland.

Ongoing:

-- The British Royal Navy will send ships to help bring home travelers who have been stranded by the restrictions on British airspace because of a cloud of volcanic ash, Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced Monday.

-- European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso ordered formation of a group to study the impact of the volcanic ash cloud on the European economy and the air travel industry.

-- Airports have lost close to 136 million euros ($184 million) so far, said Olivier Jankovec, director general of Airports Council International (ACI) Europe, a group that represents airports. More than 6.8 million passengers have been affected, he said.

-- EU Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas said Sunday if the ash cloud continues "moving as it moves, then tomorrow almost 50 percent of European (Union) space will be risk free." That would allow more flights to resume, he said. "But we'll see (Monday) what the picture shows."

Video: Family separated by ash
Video: Family stranded in Calais
Video: iReporter gets close to volcano
RELATED TOPICS

-- The disruption is costing airlines at least $200 million a day in lost revenues, said Giovanni Bisignani, director general and CEO of the industry trade group International Air Transport Association. He told CNN on Monday that if flight restrictions continue, some small and medium-sized airlines could be put in jeopardy.

-- IATA criticized European governments "for their lack of leadership in handling airspace restrictions" and "urged a re-think of the decision-making process" for closing European skies.

-- About 5,000 flights took off Sunday in European airspace, according to traffic authority Eurocontrol. About 24,000 flights happen on most Sundays.

-- Results of test flights show "there's no impact" in European Union airspace from the volcanic ash that has disrupted air travel this week, according to the European Union's Secretary of State Diego Lopez Garrido.

Austria

-- Austrian airspace, including all Austrian airports, reopened at 5 a.m. local time Monday (11 p.m. ET Sunday), said the Austrian aviation agency Austro Control. It will continue to monitor the situation and has not ruled out another closure in the coming hours.

Canada

--- Flights into and out of St. John's, Gander and Deer Lake, Newfoundland, may be affected by volcanic activity, AirCanada said.

Denmark

-- There will be no flights in Danish airspace before 2 p.m. (8 a.m. ET) Monday.

Finland

-- There will be no flights in or out of Finnish airports before 6 p.m. (11 a.m. ET) on Monday.

France

-- Paris' Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports will remain closed until 8 a.m. (2 a.m. ET) Tuesday by order of the French Civil Aviation Authority, Air France said on its website late Saturday.

-- France re-opened airports in Toulouse, Montpellier, Pau, Tarbes, Biarritz, Bordeaux, Nice, and Marseilles until 3 p.m. Monday (9 a.m. ET), when they will reassess the situation.

-- Air France is busing passengers from de Gaulle down to these airports in the south of the country.

-- They plan to have seven flights leave France on Monday: six from Toulouse airport, and one from Pau.

-- They also hope to have nine nine flights fly into France Monday -- into airports in Toulouse, Bordeaux, Nice and Marseilles.

Germany

-- The flight ban over Germany has been extended to 8 p.m. local time Monday ( 2 p.m. ET) and applies to all airports in the country, said the German aviation safety authority.

Ireland

-- Ireland extended its airspace closure through 1 p.m. (8 a.m. ET) Monday and said restrictions past then were "likely" in light of current weather forecasts.

Italy

-- The airspace in northern Italy is closed until 8 a.m. local time Tuesday ( 2 a.m. ET), the country's civil aviation authority said.

Netherlands

-- A spokeswoman for KLM -- one of the airlines that conducted test flights -- told CNN the flights show European airspace is safe with the exception of Iceland.

Norway

-- The airspace over Oslo airport (Gardermoen), and Kjevik, Torp and Rygge airports opened Monday.

Poland

-- About half the airspace in Poland is open, but that over Krakow remains closed, an airport official in the historic city said Monday.

Russia

-- Flights have been delayed and cancelled at 10 Russian international airports, mostly in the European part of the country, the transport ministry said.

-- Moscow's international Sheremetyevo airport has been affected by far more than others: 277 cancelled flights and 59 delayed, with more than 28,000 people stranded.

-- Throughout Russia, 411 flights were canceled and 77 delayed, affecting more than 34, 000 passengers, the Russian transport ministry said.

Spain

-- All 16 airports in Spain were scheduled to reopen at 3:30 p.m. Sunday (9:30 a.m. ET) -- several hours earlier than previously expected, the government announced.

Sweden

-- The airspace north and west of the flight corridor from Stockholm to Gothenburg opened Monday morning. The airspace around Bromma Airport has also opened.

-- Scandinavian airline SAS canceled all flights over north European airspace on Sunday and Monday. It said a few domestic flights will operate in Norway. Flights departing from the United States on Sunday are not canceled but may be rerouted to Norway.

Switzerland

-- Switzerland is not permitting flights before 2 p.m. (8 a.m. ET) Monday, the government said.

Thailand

Thai Airways, based in Bangkok, estimates the cloud is costing the airline $3 million a day and has stranded 6,000 of its passengers.

United Arab Emirates

-- Emirates airline says the disruption has already cost it $50 million.

United Kingdom

-- Restrictions across British air space will remain in effect until at least 7 p.m. (2 p.m. ET) Monday.

-- British Airways canceled all flights in and out of London on Sunday and Monday, the airline announced.

-- The British government says it is looking at whether to draft in the Royal Navy to help people stranded by the current travel crisis.

Other countries

-- There are restrictions on civil flights across most of northern and central Europe. This swath includes Austria, Belgium, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Slovakia and Ukraine.

Part of complete coverage on
How volcanoes can change the world
The current travel chaos is not the first time an Icelandic volcano has impacted the world, explains a scientist.
Q&A on Icelandic volcano ash plume
Here are some common questions and answers about the ash cloud crisis.
Was air shutdown really necessary?
Aviation safety officials in Europe defend the closure of parts of the continent's airspace for six days.
Iceland's volcano a mouthful to say
However you pronounce it, Eyjafjallajokull is proving difficult for the world's English speakers.