Budget Carrier easyJet Cancels Sofia-Madrid Flights

Passengers wait at El Prat airport in Barcelona, north-eastern Spain, 08 May 2010. Volcanic ashes from an eruption on Iceland continue to disrupt air traffic in Europe. Photo by EPA/BGNES

Flights of low cost carrier easyJet from Sofia to Madrid have been cancelled after seven airports in Spain were forced to close because of a cloud of volcanic ash drifting from Iceland.

Four airports in the Canary islands and three in southern Spain shut down on Tuesday morning, Spain's air traffic control agency Aena said, cited by the BBC.

In the Canaries, both airports on Tenerife and those on La Palma and La Gomera suspended operations at 0400 GMT.

Seville, Jerez and Badajoz airports shut down one hour later.

On Monday, restrictions were placed on flying through Spanish airspace, but there were no airport closures.

These restrictions continue for planes flying between 6,000m and 10,500m, mainly affecting trans-Atlantic flights, Aena said.

Some 19 airports in the north of the country were closed at the weekend.

Morocco is also reported to have closed several airports because of the ash cloud. Airports in Casablanca, the capital Rabat, Tangier, Tetouan and Essaouira have been closed for most of the morning.

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