This handout photograph taken by Etna Walk on August 11, 2026 and obtained on August 12, 2026 shows visitors standing next to lava flowing from Mount Etna volcano during an eruption, in Catania, in the Mediterranean island of Sicily. (Photo by Handout / Etna Walk / AFP)
Sicily’s Catania airport will remain closed until early Friday due to eruptions from nearby Mount Etna that have forced hundreds of flights to be canceled or rerouted over the past week.
All arrivals and departures to the island hub will be suspended through 2 a.m. local time on Friday, the airport said in a notice posted late Thursday.
About 700 flights have been affected since Aug. 7, after Europe’s most active volcano began its latest flare-up. The airport has been closed for the major part of that period, interrupting travel to the popular summer destination. More than 100,000 passengers are estimated to have been affected, La Repubblica reported.
Flights have been shifted to other island hubs like Palermo, Trapani or Comiso, but Catania is the island’s busiest airport, and Comiso has also been affected by the plumes. Some travelers have been forced to sleep at the airport, with others shifting to buses and trains, and rental-car shortages have sent prices skyrocketing.
Ryanair Holdings Plc, the dominant carrier at Catania, said on its website that passengers should expect heavy delays, cancellations and diversions on Thursday. Wizz Air Holdings Plc and EasyJet Plc and Ita Airways are among the other carriers active at the hub in southeast Sicily.
Etna’s frequent eruptions have often hindered flights at Catania. The volcanic ash coats everything from airport runways to patios and swimming pools, and aircraft flying by risk clogging up delicate engine parts.
