First British Flights Canceled Due to New Volcanic Ash Cloud

This blog post was updated on August 17, 2021.

The first reports of canceled flights due to a new volcanic ash cloud in Iceland are beginning to stream in. Scottish airline Loganair has announced the cancellation of 36 flights through Tuesday morning as the ash cloud makes its way toward the United Kingdom.

 

Officials say they are expecting disruptions at three small airports in Scotland Tuesday but advised that further disruption is likely unless a favorable change in the weather forecast occurs.

 

The latest volcanic eruption in Iceland follows last year’s eruption of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano which crippled airline operations throughout Europe. An estimated 100,000 flights were cancelled over several weeks due to a lingering ash cloud from that eruption.

 

Though the latest eruption is more powerful than last year’s, the impact on airlines is not expected to be as great. The ash from this volcano is of a different consistency and new rules put in place after last year’s disaster allow airlines to fly through ash clouds deemed safe for jet engines.

 

Source: The Telegraph