Flights allowed over parts of UK

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Flights above Scotland and Northern Ireland are allowed to resume but fears over drifting volcanic ash mean they remain banned over England and Wales.Air traffic control body Nats said it would review the situation at 2030 BST but there would be no flights over England and Wales before 0700 BST.

Few flights have left and entered UK airspace since 1200 BST Thursday because of the danger posed by the ash.

Hundreds of school pupils and teachers are among those stranded abroad.

'Significant disruption'

Many schools run trips at Easter and have been hit by the flight bans.

European controllers said some 17,000 flights had been cancelled on Friday.

European air traffic control organisation Eurocontrol said some 60% of flights have been grounded and more than half of trans-Atlantic flights cancelled.

Spokesman Brian Flynn added: "Given the fact that this volcanic ash cloud has been quite stable and moving very slowly since it started 48 hours ago, it is reasonable to assume that there will be significant disruption of European air traffic tomorrow."

Ryanair has cancelled all its flights until 1300 BST on Monday, while British Airways has said it does not expect flights to begin again until 0810 BST Sunday.

Over the next 24 to 36 hours, prevailing winds will shift slightly to drive the central part of the ash plume further to the north toward Scandinavia, according to BBC weather forecaster Matt Taylor.

"However, later this weekend, they will return to a northwesterly direction and are more likely to bring the risk of ash back to the UK."

Although the winds can be predicted, the crucial factor is how much ash the still-erupting volcano is pumping into the atmosphere.

Hundreds of thousands of people have been stranded in the UK or abroad, many unable to return home as a result of the flight cancellations.

Experts say the tiny particles of rock, glass and sand contained in the ash cloud could jam aircraft engines, as has happened in previous incidents of planes flying into plumes of volcanic ash.

'No serious harm'

The Health Protection Agency has stressed the ash does not pose a significant risk to public health, and Health Protection Scotland says only a low concentration of particles is expected to reach the ground.

Extent of Iceland volcano ash cloudThe volcanic eruption in Iceland on Wednesday night sent plumes of ash thousands of feet into the air. The cloud has spread across the UK to Europe.


The spread of the ash cloud at 20-30,000ft raised concerns for air safety, forcing at least 12 countries to restrict or halt flights in their airspace.


The eruptions from the Eyjafjallajoekull volcano continue to pump out ash clouds sporadically, which means the disruption is set to continue.


Although the cloud is too high to pose a health risk, people with breathing problems have been advised to take extra care if it falls to ground level.


It advises that some people with respiratory problems may experience short-term effects, but there should be no serious harm.

Nats initially restricted all UK airspace at 1200 BST on Thursday, but allowed some flights into Belfast, Prestwick and Glasgow airports as gaps in the cloud became apparent.

Stranded passengers have flooded other modes of travel. Eurostar trains reported a complete sell-out of its services to Brussels and Paris for the second day on Friday.

"We are carrying more than 38,000 people today and all our trains are full," a spokeswoman for the company said.

"We are telling potential customers without bookings not to come to St Pancras because they will not be able to travel."

The Ministry of Defence says 550 military personnel are grounded in Cyprus as a result of the travel restrictions.

Rail and ferry services are reporting rises in their passenger numbers, with ferry operators Stena and Fastnet saying there were significant increases in customers on services departing from Wales.

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