Mount Etna’s ash cloud shut Catania airport again, here’s what your airline actually owes you

Breaking · Flights & Access Catania halted arrivals after a 4km Etna ash plume, and EU261 treats volcanic ash as ‘extraordinary’, so no cash payout, but care and rerouting are… By Laxman Rawal · Sep 26, 2026 Read the full story

Mount Etna erupted strongly enough overnight into 26 September 2026 to push an ash cloud roughly 4km high over eastern Sicily, and Catania—Fontanarossa airport — Italy's fifth-busiest by passenger traffic — suspended all arrivals until 1000 GMT (12:00 local… Travel Himalaya Nepal · News Read the full story

What actually happened at Catania airport

A violent overnight storm combined with ash drifting south from Etna's North-East crater to shut down normal operations in two stages. Controllers first cut arrivals to four a hour — a third of the airport's usual 12 — as the plume crossed the approach paths… Travel Himalaya Nepal · News Read the full story

What EU261 and UK261 actually say about volcanic ash

Both rules say the same thing: volcanic ash, alongside air traffic control strikes and severe weather, is an 'extraordinary circumstance', so the airline does not owe the usual &euro;250—&euro;600 (&pound;220—&pound;520) per-passenger payout. That… Travel Himalaya Nepal · News Read the full story

What you can still claim, even when cash compensation is off the table

The extraordinary-circumstances clause only removes the fixed cash sum. Everything else on the airline's duty-of-care list still applies, and it is worth knowing the difference before you argue with a check-in desk. Keep every receipt for meals, transport and… Travel Himalaya Nepal · News Read the full story

What this means if you are flying through Sicily this week

If your flight touches Catania before Sunday afternoon, check your airline's app before you leave for the airport rather than trusting the departure board once you arrive — Etna's ash has closed and reopened Catania several times this year, sometimes within… Travel Himalaya Nepal · News Read the full story

Common questions about the Etna disruption

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News Read the full story

Will Mount Etna keep disrupting Catania flights?

Likely, at least through this eruptive phase. Etna has forced repeated ash-related restrictions at Catania across July, August and September 2026, and the airport operator has become practised at the capacity-cut-then-suspend pattern used this weekend. Travel Himalaya Nepal · News Read the full story

Does travel insurance cover the costs the airline will not?

Check your policy's travel delay section — some plans pay a fixed daily amount once delay hours pass a set threshold, regardless of what the airline provides, which can cover incidentals the airline's duty of care does not stretch to. Travel Himalaya Nepal · News Read the full story

What if my missed connection was on a different ticket?

Rerouting and refund rights apply to the ticket that was disrupted, not to a separately booked onward flight — two separate tickets means the second airline owes you nothing for a delay caused by the first. Diversion and red-alert detail: La Sicilia, 26… Travel Himalaya Nepal · News Read the full story

Everest Base Camp Trek — 12 Days

Plan your trek NMA-certified guides · permits sorted · 5,000+ treks since 1998. $1700 pp Plan this trek

Get the free Nepal Trek Insider Guide

Free guide Permits, costs, seasons and routes — the essentials we send every traveller, plus a free, no-obligation trip quote. ↑ Swipe up Read the full report and grab the free Nepal Trek Insider Guide — or ask our Pokhara team for a tailored, no-obligation quote. Read more & get the free guide Plan my trip — free quote Browse Everest Base Camp Trek — 12 Days