Catania Airport Shuts Down Amid Volcanic Eruption

DALLAS — Due to disruptions in air travel caused by Mount Etna's eruption, which is the largest active volcano in Europe, Catania–Fontanarossa Airport (CTA) on the Italian island of Sicily was closed on Friday.

The airport management firm issued a statement saying the runway at CTA was "unusable due to volcanic ash fall: both arrivals and departures are suspended."

For the past three days, Mount Etna's  crater has been erupting fiery lava fountains and spewing ash that has fallen into CTA below.

The airport advised passengers to confirm the status of their flights before leaving for the airport and stated that flights should resume at 3:00 pm (09:00 am ET).

The second-largest city on the Italian island of Sicily, Catania, is located 2.3 nautical miles southwest of CTA, also called Vincenzo Bellini Airport.

The featured image shows the airport's apron with the Etna volcano visible in the background.