FLIGHTS in Italy have been cancelled following an eruption from Mount Etna.
The volcano in Sicily is one of the world's most active and it belched smoke and ashes in a new eruption on Sunday, forcing the closure of a nearby airport.
Catania airport said in a statement: "Due to the eruptive activity of Etna and copious amounts of volcanic ash on the airport surfaces, flight operations are suspended until safety conditions are restored."
Loud rumbles could be heard in the region from early Sunday, the Repubblica daily said.
But heavy cloud around the volcano's summit made it impossible to see the eruptions, the National Institute for Geophysics and Vulcanology said.
At 3,324 metres (nearly 11,000 feet), Etna is the tallest active volcano in Europe and has erupted frequently in the past 500,000 years.
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Around 10 million passengers last year transited through Catania International Airport, which services the eastern part of Sicily, one of Italy's most popular tourist destinations.
The eruption covered the airport in ash, with one affected passenger describing it as "hell" inside.
Lucy Sophia was due to fly from the airport, but instead had her plans halted.
She tweeted: "Catania Airport is HELL (and there’s ash everywhere outside). I can’t believe Etna decided to erupt.
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"Having an awful time at the airport – no taxis, couldn’t get into airline hotel and now scrambling to find one online."
The cancellations lasted throughout Sunday evening into Monday morning, although easyJet suggested that flights could soon be set to resume.
The airline still recommends passengers check airline websites for updates on their flights and said flights would be halted further if it was still unsafe.
They tweeted: "Catania Airport has advised that the runway should be cleared at 9:00 this morning.
"If the conditions are below operating standards the flight will not be operated as the safety of our passengers and crew are our first priority."
The airport should have been the sixth busiest in Italy yesterday – with 253 flights scheduled to depart and arrive, according to flight data firm Cirium.
They said that 68 flights to and from Catania Airport had been cancelled as of 5pm BST yesterday.
A total of 44 departures had been cancelled from Catania and Ryanair were the most affected, with 23 cancelled departures.
ITA Airways had seven outbound flights grounded, while easyJet had six.
Meanwhile, 24 arrivals had also been cancelled into Catania – with Ryanair, ITA Airways and easyJet once again the most affected airlines.
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Meanwhile, flights in France had to be cancelled because of strikes earlier this month – and more could be grounded.
And Brits heading to Spain this summer could also be affected by walkouts.
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