Solitary Shannon flight departs - Cork Airport in total shutdown

ONE solitary plane took off from Shannon yesterday, while all flights in and out of Cork Airport were shut down.

Around 100 passengers boarded an Aer Lingus Boeing A330 when she arrived in Shannon at noon from Dublin on route to Boston.

Many were just using Boston as a destination for transfers to other American cities.

Two transatlantic flights which had been scheduled to arrive in Shannon from New York and Newark yesterday morning were cancelled.

On an average Friday, Shannon would handle 14 arrivals and 14 departures, involving around 4,500 passengers.

Airport spokeswoman Claire McEnery described the terminal as “like a ghost town” while Dublin Airport was last night described as “eerie” and intending passengers were opting toeither spend more time in the capital or else were hot footing it to Dublin and Dun Laoghaire ferry ports. Aer Lingus were still flying transatlantic routes however. Up to 100,000 people on 900 different flights in and out of Dublin airport have been affected so far by the effects of the volcano.

Inbound flights from Glasgow, Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris as well as Heathrow and Gatwick were all cancelled at Shannon

Ms Enery that shops at Shannon Airport in particular were suffering as there was no revenue from passengers.

While Irish airspace was reopened to flights yesterday morning, none could travel from Britain or France. By 8pm last evening, flights to and from Cork, Kerry, Shannon and Waterford were halted again as the ash cloud returned southwards.

In a statement on its website, British Airways said all flights in and out of London tomorrow would be cancelled.

A spokeswoman for Cork Airport said the new terminal was deserted.

On Fridays, the airport would normally handle 32 inbound and outbound flights. But the runway was bereft of anything touching down or taking off.

All the airports said the situation remains unpredictable. They warned passengers to check online for their airlines’ latest updates and also to re-book flights.

The weather maps showed the ash cloud hanging over England and Wales and most of mainland Europe yesterday.

This will mean serious disruption will continue for east bound and south bound traffic out of all Irish airports.

Eurocontrol, which coordinates air traffic control in 38 European nations, said the problem was “unprecedented” and called an extraordinary teleconference meeting for Monday to discuss the matter and review its coordination measures.

However, there was a glimmer of hope for those stranded in Northern England and Wales last night.

Air traffic control company Nats said airports in Manchester and Liverpool, plus those further north, might be available for six hours between 4am and 10am today.

The company said other areas would face flight restrictions until at least 1pm.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said that it has not recorded any increase in pollution as a result of the ash cloud.

In France, British passengers desperate to get on board ferries at Dunkirk were buying bikes as the only tickets left were for cyclists.