Moldovan airspace remains closed at least until 16.00, Update

All the flights that were to take off or land today, April 17, at the Chisinau International Airport have been postponed. The airspace will remain closed at least until 16.00 owing to the volcanic ash cloud coming from southern Iceland, Info-Prim Neo reports. According to the director general of the Chisinau International Airport Roman Podkorytov, the flights have been cancelled or postponed in order to avoid the risks to which the airplanes are exposed when flying through a volcanic cloud. [Update] Sources in the airport say the flights will be resumed when the weather permits. The air traffic may remain paralyzed after 16.00 if the ash cloud does not disperse. The passengers can choose between being paid back the money for the ticket or waiting until the flights are allowed, the airport’s director said. The volcanic ash cloud from Iceland is expected to get to Moldova, above the municipality of Balti, by noon. Many airports in Europe were expected to remain closed at least until Saturday, and officials warned of an unprecedented bottleneck in global air traffic. Scientists, unable to estimate when the eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano might end, predicted that it could take hours, days or far longer for European skies to clear of the ash particles that experts say could choke jet engines enough to shut them down.