Turkey restricts airspace due to volcanic ash

Turkey's civil aviation authority said Sunday the country would restrict the use of its airspace due to disruptions by the ash clouds of an Icelandic volcano.

Turkey's airspace between the flight level of 200 and 350 will be closed to flights from 4:30 p.m. local time (1430 GMT) Sunday to 12:00 a.m. (1000 GMT) Monday as the volcanic ash has spread to Turkey, the Civil Aviation Directorate said in a statement on its website.

The ash clouds are also expected to affect the airspace over the northwestern traffic hub Istanbul after 12:00 a.m. (1000 GMT) Monday, said the Directorate, warning airlines to closely monitor the situation.

The Eyjafjallajokull volcano in southeast Iceland began erupting on Wednesday for the second time in a month from below the Eyjafjallajokull glacier, hurling a plume of ash 6 to 11 km into the atmosphere and causing the biggest travel chaos in years in Europe.

Volcanic ash contains tiny particles of glass and pulverized rock that can damage engines and airframes.

Source:Xinhua