Volcanic cloud affects British, Irish airspace

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — The main cloud of ash from an Icelandic volcano swept north of Scandinavia yesterday, disrupting flights over Greenland, while a second, smaller plume stretched south toward the coasts of Scotland and Ireland.

European officials warned that ash from the Grimsvotn (GREEMSH-votn) volcano could affect the airspace over western Scotland and Ireland starting yesterday but it was not immediately clear how many flights, if any, would be disrupted.

The April 2010 eruption of another Icelandic volcano prompted aviation officials to close Europe's airspace for five days out of fear that the ash could harm jet engines. Thousands of flights were grounded, airlines lost millions of dollars and millions of travellers were stranded, many sleeping on airport floors across northern Europe.

The impact of Grimsvotn was expected to be far smaller because the larger cloud was moving far north of most flight paths. Travellers and aviation officials were still watching nervously.

Danish air traffic officials said the main ash plume reached eastern Greenland, a semiautonomous Danish territory. Air Greenland said its Monday flight between the island's main airport and Copenhagen was cancelled as a result.

Aviation officials in Norway said the cloud might also affect flights to and from the Arctic islands of Svalbard yesterday.

The European air traffic control agency said the smaller ash plume was not expected to move further east than the western coast of Scotland. It said in a Twitter feed that Scotland could be affected by this morning.

Iceland shut its main airport after Grimsvotn, about 120 miles (200 kilometres) east of Reykjavik, erupted Saturday. The airport remained closed yesterday morning, but officials had hoped to reopen it later in the day.

Eurocontrol's models of ash concentration showed the main plume of ash at heights from 20,000 feet to 35,000 — the normal altitudes for passenger airliners — gradually extending northward from Iceland over yesterday and tomorrow. The cloud is predicted to arch its way north of Scandinavia and possibly touch the islands off the northern Russian coastline by tomorrow.

Neither plume is projected to reach the European mainland.