Grimsvötn volcano
"A spectacular volcanic eruption beneath Iceland’s biggest glacier has spewed a column of ash and gas more than seven miles into the air, forcing airlines to divert flights to avoid the blast.
At least ten transatlantic flights have been rerouted south of Iceland to skirt the plume rising from the Grimsvötn volcano in the east of the island, which began to erupt on Monday and continues to steam with noxious fumes and debris.
The cloud of ash has already started to land in Norway, Sweden and Finland, though without causing any damage or putting human health at risk.
Meteorologists said it was fortunate that prevailing winds were carrying the column towards Scandinavia rather than to the south of Iceland, where they would have caused havoc in the air traffic trunk route for flights between Europe and North America.
A change in the wind taking the ash south or west could disrupt up to 50 flights a day, though this is not forecast. "I don’t even want to think about that," said Bergthor Bergthorsson of the Icelandic Aviation Authority.
Dozens of domestic flights to the north and east of Iceland have been grounded by of the ash, which can stop aircraft engines if they attempt to fly through it.
The Dutch airline KLM, which operates several flights across the Arctic, has also cancelled 59 flights, though fog at Amsterdam’s Schipol airport was also a factor.
The National Air Traffic Control Services (NATS), however, said that no flights to or from Britain had been affected, as their routes did not take them through ash-clogged airspace."
The Times online