Indonesia halts flights at five airports due to Anak Krakatau volcanic ash cloud

Indonesia halted operations at five airports on Sunday, including its main international airport, suspending hundreds of flights, because of an ash cloud from the Anak Krakatau volcano.

Saturday’s eruption, which produced lava and booming sounds that could be heard up to 700km away (435 miles), according to Indonesia’s geology agency, also interrupted some school activities and fishing.

Two more eruptions were recorded on Sunday.

Ash was detected in the airspace around Soekarno-Hatta international airport near Jakarta, prompting authorities to suspend operations. They announced several extensions of the shutdown, and at the time of writing the airport was to remain closed to flights until 1.30pm local time on Sunday.

The suspension affected 301 flights, including 58 international flights, airport operator Angkasa Pura announced. Singapore Airlines said it had cancelled flights to and from Jakarta for the rest of Sunday.

The Australian airline Qantas said there were “disruptions to a number of Qantas services, including cancellations to and from Jakarta today”.

“Our meteorologists and operations teams are closely monitoring conditions in and around Jakarta and any impact on our operations. Safety remains our highest priority. We have contacted affected customers and are providing assistance. Services will resume when conditions allow.”

“The latest paper test … showed positive results indicating the spread of volcanic ash in the Soekarno-Hatta international airport area,” the transport ministry said.

Ash ‌reached as high as 6,000 metres (20,000 feet) ‌on the Java side of the volcano and 15,000 metres on the Sumatra side and some parts of Banten province in Java, meteorological agency BMKG posted on ‌its website.

The airport operator said it was providing food and light refreshments for affected passengers and buses to hotels, in coordination with the airlines.

Several ​schools cancelled activities on Saturday after students and residents ​suffered eye irritations from the ash, while fishermen cancelled fishing trips, local media outlet Kompas reported.

The disaster mitigation agency BNPB said it would conduct a weather modification operation, which could ​include cloud-seeding, on Sunday to promote rain.

“If it rains heavily enough, the volcanic ash that has been disrupting our daily lives since yesterday and continuing today will be washed away quickly,” BNPB chief Suharyanto told a press conference.

Volcanic ash can damage airliners’ jet engines – baking on to hot internal parts and quickly wearing out turbine blades, as well as clogging fuel and air systems. It can also damage the pilots’ windscreens.

More than 22,000 passengers and 209 flights were affected, the transportation ministry said, in particular those bound to and from Singapore.

Other affected international routes included Doha, Sydney, and Kuala Lumpur.

At least 16 domestic flights to Bali were cancelled, local airport authorities said.

Anak Krakatau, which means “child of Krakatau”, sits in a strait that separates the islands of Java and Sumatra. The volcano has been sporadically active since it emerged from the sea in the caldera formed after the 1883 eruption of Mount Krakatau. That was one of the deadliest and most destructive volcanic eruptions in human history with an estimated 35,000 people killed.

Port authorities said ships passing through the strait were prohibited to approach within 3km radius of the volcano and should be vigilant for danger.

With Agence France-Presse