Catania Airport suspends flights following Mount Etna activity

Sicily’s busiest airport has suspended all departures and arrivals following volcanic activity at Mount Etna.

According to a statement from Catania Airport, flights will be suspended until at least 6 pm CEST. Passengers are being told not to travel to the airport without checking the status of their flight with their airline.

Some flights are being diverted to Palermo Airport, with some 33 additional flights landing there on 5 July. The airport has shared a list of the two dozen flights set to land there today on its Facebook page.

Airlines are arranging transport by bus to take holidaymakers to their original destination.

The latest Volcano Observatory Notice for Aviation, issued in the early hours of the morning, notes that strong ash emission is “ongoing”, and that the volcanic cloud height is around 4,500 metres at the top.

The Italian Department of Civil Protection had raised its alert level for Europe’s most active volcano from green to yellow on 26 June at 7.30 pm following an “increase in volcanic tremors”. Spectacular drone footage from last week showed rivers of lava flowing down the volcano.

Catania Airport, which is located around 45 kilometres away from Mount Etna, is served by airlines including Ryanair, easyJet, Wizz Air, KLM and Lufthansa, among others.

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