Media

The IAA can confirm that restrictions in Irish airspace will continue until 11.00 tomorrow (Friday 16 April) at the earliest.

Based on the projections of the Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre, which tracks the movement of the volcanic ash, Irish airspace will be significantly affected until at least 11.00 tomorrow morning.

Projections of the cloud movement are made every six hours and you can view these projections here.

At present air traffic services have been restricted in the UK, Norway, Sweden, Belgium, The Netherlands and Denmark.

The volcano is still active at present and the movement of the volcanic ash depends on the weather. The indicators are that the weather will remain unchanged for the next few days.

The next update from the Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre will be between 18.00 and 19.00 this evening and the IAA will provide an update at this time.

It is not safe for aircraft to fly into volcanic dust. The rock particles cause significant damage to the surface of the aircraft skin and the engine components. This dust can cause engines to shut down. The dust particles within a cloud of volcanic ash can also cause electrical faults.

ENDS