Volcanic ash from Mount Etna brought air traffic to a halt over Sicily’s main gateway for tourists on Friday, forcing Catania’s airport to suspend arriving flights before reopening late this afternoon.
“Following the downgrade of the volcanic activity alert level from Red to Orange, the resumption of flight operations has been authorised with immediate effect,” Catania airport said in a statement.
“Airspace sectors are therefore back in operation and flight landing services are being gradually restored,” it added.
Airport authorities had stopped incoming flights earlier in the day “due to Etna’s eruptive activity” and the “associated release of volcanic ash into the atmosphere”.
Mount Etna enters a new violent phase, characterised by intense activity at a summit crater
Officials said the episode began to build quickly on Thursday evening, with volcanic activity intensifying at speed before turning into a strong lava fountain overnight.
The eruption sent a large ash cloud drifting to the southeast, and ashfall was reported in nearby towns including Ragalna and Adrano.
Scientists also observed a fresh lava flow in the Valle del Leone, fed by a new eruptive vent that opened at an altitude of about 2,750 metres.
From the summit, a plume of smoke was visible on a webcam published on the National Institute for Geophysics and Volcanology’s website, which keeps watch on Mount Etna.
Rising to 3,324 metres, Mount Etna is Europe’s tallest active volcano and has erupted frequently over the past 500,000 years.
Catania International Airport, which serves eastern Sicily—one of Italy’s most popular tourist destinations—handled around 12 million passengers in 2024.
