Etna eruption causes delays and cancellations of flights from Malta

The eruption of Mount Etna has caused delays to flights from Malta and the cancellation of a return flight on Friday.

Catania airport in Sicily has been closed after the eruption of Mount Etna, Europe’s largest active volcano, spewed ash into the sky, disrupting air traffic.

A spokesperson for Malta International Airport said that due to the eruption, flight FR367 departed 80 minutes late for Palermo instead of Catania and the return flight FR368 was cancelled. There was also a delay in the departure of two other flights – KM640 and KM641 – also bound for Catania.

“So far there is no information regarding evening flights operated to and from Catania,” the spokesman said.

Catania airport said flights were expected to resume at 3 p.m. and asked travelers to check the status of their flights before traveling to the airport.

“The runway at Catania airport is unusable due to volcanic ash: arrivals and departures are suspended,” the company that manages the airport said in a statement on Friday morning.

Plumes of ash rose into the sky up to 4.5 kilometers high, the Italian National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday.

Millions of passengers pass through Catania Airport every year, connecting them to eastern Sicily, one of Italy’s most popular tourist destinations.