Ash clouds caused by a surge in activity from Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano brought fresh travel chaos to thousands of passengers yesterday, as airports shut in London, Ireland and the Netherlands.

London Heathrow - Europe's busiest air hub, and London Gatwick - reopened after a six-hour shutdown yesterday due to a no-fly zone that was imposed.

Amsterdam - one of Europe's key air hubs - and Rotterdam airports in the Netherlands were both closed until 2pm local time (8pm, Singapore time) as the ash cloud moved east.

Eurocontrol, Europe's air traffic control agency, said 28,000 flights were expected yesterday in Europe, about 1,000 less than normal, mainly due to disruptions in the airspace over Britain and the Netherlands.

Yet in a hopeful note, charts published by Eurocontrol said the ash cloud should be gradually breaking up and retreating during the day.

Airports in Northern Ireland, much of Scotland - including Edinburgh and Aberdeen - and parts of Wales were still under a no-fly order as winds pushed the ash plume into Europe's busy airspace.
In England, Bristol in the south-west was also shut. London's other main airports City, Luton and Stansted were open but advising passengers to check with their airlines for updates.
The National Air Traffic Services, which manages British airspace, said: "The volcanic ash cloud continues to change shape and two key areas affect operations stretching from the south of England to Northern Ireland, and over much of mainland Scotland to the Shetland Isles."

Airports across Britain and Ireland were closed for much of Sunday, which resulted in the cancellation of about 400 flights. Britain's weather service says the north-west winds should shift midweek, moving the ash away from Britain.

Europe's skies were partially closed for up to a week in April following the eruption of Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano, in the biggest shutdown of the continent's airspace for more than 50 years.