Czech airspace closed due to volcanic ash cloud

Czech airports gradually suspended all flights on Friday as a volcanic ash cloud from Iceland spread across Europe. Prague’s Ruzyně international airport closed at noon and has been rescheduling flights. Fifty-eight flights out of Ruzyně were cancelled on Thursday and dozens more on Friday morning. Brno and Ostrava airports were the last to close down, suspending all flights at 2pm on Friday. The flight ban does not concern emergency aid helicopters and light aircraft.

Air traffic in many parts of Europe has been disrupted by the volcanic activity in Iceland with international airports in the Scandinavian states, the Baltic states, Britain, Poland, Austria, Belgium and the Netherlands closing down all or most of their airspace. Meteorologists say it is impossible to tell how quickly the ash may disperse or settle. The problem was reportedly at its worst above the Czech Republic between 12 and 2 pm on Friday.