Now Reading: Mount Etna eruption shuts Catania airport, 1,000 flights cancelled
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Mount Etna eruption shuts Catania airport, 1,000 flights cancelled
Mount Etna eruption shuts Catania airport, 1,000 flights cancelled
Sicily's busiest airport, Catania, will remain closed until at least 8 a.m. Friday due to Mount Etna's ongoing eruption. Over 1,350 flights have been disrupted since August 6, with about 1,000 cancelled…
The Story in Brief
Sicily's busiest airport, Catania, will remain closed until at least 8 a.m. Friday due to Mount Etna's ongoing eruption. Over 1,350 flights have been disrupted since August 6, with about 1,000 cancelled and 350 rerouted to Palermo, Trapani, and Comiso, Bloomberg reports citing the airport operator. More than 100,000 passengers are estimated affected, according to La Repubblica.
Volcanic ash has coated runways and grounded airlines including Ryanair, EasyJet, Wizz Air, and Ita Airways. A severe shortage of rental cars has pushed local transport prices up. Assoesercenti estimates four days of disruption could cost between €13 million and €24 million in tourist spending. Tourism accounts for about 4.2% of Sicily's economy.
The Indian Opinion
European media are framing this as a 'summer travel chaos' narrative that blames the volcano alone. The real story is the lack of contingency planning at a hub that sits next to Europe's most active volcano. Assoesercenti's call for a permanent coordination body is sensible. Sicily should know by now that ash will fall. Watch whether the airport installs real-time ash-clearing protocols before the next eruption, that will separate real preparedness from excuses.
Source: livemint.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
