Almost all European airspace open

A week after a gigantic volcanic ash cloud descended on Europe, Eurocontrol, the continent’s air traffic coordination agency said on Thursday that nearly all European airspace had been reopened. Some areas in Finland, Norway, Scotland and Sweden remained shut as a precautionary measure.

Photo: Reuters

“Almost all European airspace is available, with a few exceptions in parts of southern Finland, southern Norway, northern Scotland, and western Sweden,” the agency said in a statement.

Some cancellations were expected because of the limited restrictions, while logistical issues with the resumation of normal schedules were also expected to cause some problems.

Services began to restart on Tuesday following the unprecedented five-day shutdown, while on Wednesday there were more than 22,000 flights in European airspace, almost 80 per cent of normal traffic.

Eurocontrol

“Today Eurocontrol expects that traffic will be at normal levels of between 28,000 and 29,000 flights,” said the agency.

Officials warned that it could take days for a return to normal operations as airlines deal with the backlog of stranded passengers and planes in the wrong location.

Ryanair, the Irish budget airline, announced it would comply with EU regulations to reimburse thousands of passengers on Thursday. Chief Executive Michael O'Leary had said EU legislation was not designed to cover expenses for passengers and the airline would not be shelling out. Airlines lost millions of euros during the airspace shutdown.

The Eyjafjallajökull volcano continued to erupt on Thursday, however authorities said activity was stable.

“There’s no sign of another eruption,” said a spokesperson for the Icelandic civil protection authorities.