Iceland volcano Grimsvotn has caused widespread European air travel disruption, with thousands affected, after ash hit much of European airspace, reports The AP.
Even though some, including one airline, have said the claims are either exaggerated or simply false, hundreds of flights were nevertheless canceled Tuesday.
Strong winds blew the cloud of ash from the Icelandic volcano over skies in Scotland. Experts say that particles in the ash could stall jet engines and sandblast planes' windows.
The only solace for frustrated passengers and airlines is that officials in Iceland said the amount of ash being released by the volcano is decreasing.
Also encouraging is officials’ belief that the disruption will not be as bad as last year, when millions were stranded following the eruption of Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano, The AP reports.
Nonetheless, British authorities said concentrations of ash in the skies over Scotland were high.
Barry Grommett, spokesman for Britain's weather agency, said, “All the data we are receiving confirms our forecasts, that there is high-density ash over Scotland.”
Irish budget airline Ryanair was forced by Irish authorities to cancel all 68 flights in and out of Scotland for the remainder of Tuesday.
Seven other airlines — most of them regional carriers — also grounded their Scottish flights.
The ash cloud problem also affected Sweden, where 10 domestic flights were canceled Tuesday evening, reports The AP.
The country's aviation officials say they expect medium concentrations of ash over its western coast late Tuesday, including over its second-largest city Goteborg.
The International Air Transport Association, the main international body representing carriers, said the British government should have had Cessna planes ready to conduct tests, instead of relying on the weather service.
British Airways said it sent its own verification flight, an Airbus A320, to Scotland late Tuesday to assess the risk.
U.K. airspace was not closed, but some airlines would shunned risk-taking and were willing to follow official advice, The AP reports.
British Airways grounded 92 flights in total, and Dutch airline KLM canceled a total of 42 flights.
The Grimsvotn volcano began erupting on Saturday, sending clouds of ash high into the air.
However, Elin Jonasdottir, a forecaster at Iceland's meteorological office, said the amount of ash spewing from the volcano tapered off dramatically on Tuesday, The AP reports.
The ash cloud forced President Barack Obama to shorten a visit to Ireland on Monday, and has renewed fears of a repeat of huge travel disruptions in Europe last year.
This year, however, aviation authorities will give airlines information detailed information about the location and density of ash clouds.
Any airline that wants to fly through the ash cloud can do so, provided it can convince its own national aviation regulators it is safe to do so, reports The AP.
