Iceland volcano cloud grounds UK flights, Cyprus Airways cancels

A volcanic eruption in Iceland, which has thrown up a 6 km high cloud of ash and disrupted air traffic in northern Europe, has grown more intense, an expert said on Thursday.
British Airways said in an announcement that “due to the weather conditions, a plume of volcanic ash has now spread southwards towards northern Europe and is severely affecting all airlines' flight activity in the area.”
“For safety reasons and on direction from Air Traffic Control a decision has been made to cancel all departures from London Heathrow and London Gatwick for the rest of the day,” the airline added.
Cyprus Airways cancelled its afternoon flight to Heathrow, although the noon flight from London’s capital made it out in time.
The eruption under the Eyjafjallajokull glacier — 10 times more powerful than another one nearby last month — showed no sign of abating after more than 24 hours of activity, University of Iceland volcanologist Armannn Hoskuldsson said.
To the east of the volcano, thousands of hectares of land were covered by a thick layer of ash, while a cloud was blotting out the sun in some areas along the southern coast of Iceland, local media reported.
The cloud of ash from the eruption has hit air travel all over northern Europe, with flights grounded or diverted due to the risk of engine damage from sucking in particles of ash from the volcanic cloud, airport officials said.