Mount Etna new eruption in Catania causes airport issues: departing flights cancelled

 A new eruption of Mount Etna has sent a massive ash cloud drifting toward Catania. The situation prompted authorities to close the local airport's airspace and suspend arrivals until 10 p.m., resulting in numerous flights being diverted to the airports in Comiso and Palermo.

 The Etna Observatory of the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) has issued a VONA bulletin with a red alert, reporting that “the estimated height of the volcanic cloud is approximately 4,000 meters at the summit.”

 The accumulation of ash at high altitudes made halting landing operations inevitable, prompting airport management to issue a specific advisory to travelers: “Passengers are requested to check the status of their flight with their airline before heading to the airport.”

By early afternoon, the situation remained unchanged; SAC announced that high-altitude winds had driven the volcanic ash, necessitating “the closure of airspace in sectors C1 and B3. All flight operations—both arrivals and departures—will remain suspended until 10:00 PM today, September 14.”