La Palma, Spain partially reopens amid volcanic eruption

Santa Cruz de La Palma Airport has partially reopened to traffic amid the ongoing eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcano which has spewn jets of lava and ash into the air across the island.

The Spanish airports operator (Aeropuertos Españoles y Navegación Aérea – AENA) said in a social media post on Sunday, September 26, that after an intense ash removal exercise it had managed to return the airport to an operational state. However, flights to the airfield can only be conducted with a flight plan that has been pre-approved by the national air navigation services provider (ENAIRE). ENAIRE has already restricted airspace around La Palma Airport given the presence of two large ash clouds on either side of the volcano.

Binter Canarias (NT, Las Palmas), CanaryFly, Vueling Airlines, and Iberia have all suspended commercial flights to and from the airport until conditions improve and safety is guaranteed.

However, following an improvement in ash cloud conditions outside of La Palma, Binter and CanaryFly said they had resumed flights to other islands in the Canary archipelago, including San Sebastian de La Gomera as well as Tenerife Sur and Tenerife Norte.

The Canary Islands Volcanology Institute has suggested the eruption could last between 24 and 84 days.

Editorial Comment: Corrects to La Palma airport – 27.09.2021 – 05:43 UTC