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Mexican authorities on Sunday raised the warning level for the Popocatepetl volcano to one step below red alert as smoke, ash and molten rock spewed into the sky posing risks to aviation and far-flung communities below. The huge volcano that towers above Mexico City is considered one of the most dangerous in the world because some 25 million people live within a 60-mile radius. Sunday's increased alert level - to 'yellow phase three' - comes a day after two Mexico City airports temporarily halted operations due to falling ash, which also forced 11 villages to cancel school sessions.

Volcano scientists issued an alert Wednesday, warning that a cloud of ash - from an eruption more than century ago - was headed toward Alaska's Kodiak Island. The ash is from the powerful 1912 eruption of Novarupta, a volcano on the Alaska Peninsula that dropped volcanic ash that is still visible today. Strong northwesterly winds in the vicinity of Katmai National Park and Preserve and Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes on Wednesday kicked up the loose volcano ash.

At least six U.S. airlines canceled more than 40 flights into and out of Mexico City and Toluca airports Thursday after the Popocatépetl volcano spewed out ash, steam and glowing rocks, airport officials said. Mexico City airport spokesman Jorge Gomez said U.S. Airways, Delta, United, American and Alaska Airlines canceled 47 flights as a precaution. But he said the airport otherwise continues to operate normally and that by Thursday afternoon no ash had reached the area, about 40 miles (70 kilometers) from the volcano. …

Ryanair has been told it must look after passengers when flights are grounded by natural catastrophes, strikes and technical faults. The European Court of Justice ruling yesterday means the airline must cover the cost of meals, hotels and transport. The case dates back to the disruption caused by the eruption of a volcano in Iceland in 2010. Passengers were stranded across Europe. Ryanair alone canceled 9,400 flights due to the ash cloud. The ruling is a blow to Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary, who at first refused to abide by EU laws which state airlines should support stranded passengers until they...

Airports in Ireland and Scotland were closed on Wednesday after a plume of volcanic ash drifting south from Iceland caused a second day of disruption. The busiest airports in the south-east of England, including Heathrow and Gatwick, are not expected to be affected, although a buffer zone keeping aircraft away from the plume could affect flights as far south as Manchester. “We are not expecting the cloud to come further south at the moment,” said Jonathan Nicholson, a spokesman for the Civil Aviation Authority. Glasgow, Scotland’s busiest international airport, will be closed until midnight on Wednesday; Belfast City and International...

When an Icelandic volcano erupted last week, it didn't just wreak havoc with commercial flights. It grounded American jet fighters and some of the most advanced air forces in the world. Like their commercial cousins, fighters, reconnaissance planes, helicopters and other military aircraft around the region sat idle for days. They are just now beginning to come back to life, although fighter jets — which have highly sensitive engines — remain grounded across much of Europe. The U.S. Air Force's biggest fighter wing in Europe, at England's RAF Lakenheath air base, was under no-fly orders and many of its F-15s...

NATO officials will not fully confirm a report that several F-16s were damaged by the volcanic ash released from Iceland's, Mount Eyjafjallajökull eruption on April 14, which has caused widespread disruption to air travel across most of Europe. A source at NATO would only confirm that the comments had come from a US diplomat, but did not know which of the nations had been affected. However an official with the European Air Traffic Agency was later to have said that an F-16 from the Belgian Air Force had sustained damage. F-16s from several member states are in Europe participating in...

A senior Western diplomat says several NATO F-16 fighters suffered engine damage after flying through the volcanic ash cloud covering large parts of Europe. The official declined to provide more details on the military flights, except to say that glasslike deposits were found inside the planes' engines after they patroled over European airspace. Last week, two Finnish Air Force F-18 fighter-bombers suffered similar damage while flying through the ash plume that has paralyzed air traffic over much of Europe. Both landed safely, but their jet engines will require expensive overhauls. Volcanic ash tends to stick to a jet engine's interior...

Air traffic in Sweden and Europe is currently paralyzed due to a volcanic eruption in Iceland. How could a local event in the furthest reaches of Northern Europe paralyze an entire continent? The reason is that the ash that fills the air following a volcanic eruption has a much denser content than a normal dust or ash cloud. The ash affects air-traffic safety in a number of ways. The ash comprises minerals, which are extremely small and hard rock particles. They are so hard that they can have a blasting effect on the aircraft’s cockpit windowpanes when an aircraft meets...

In Europe, the volcanic ash danger travels at high altitudes, but for Iceland's farmers the problem is very much on the ground. Farmers across the region where the volcano erupted this week under the Eyjafjallajokull glacier have been scrambling to protect their herds from inhaling or ingesting the ash, which can cause internal bleeding, long-term bone damage and teeth loss. Near Skogar, south of the volcano, the ash blew down from the mountain, blotting out the sunlight and covering everything - pastures, animals and humans - in a thick, gray paste.

Air forces across Europe struggled to cope as a volcanic ash cloud that has also halted most commercial services swept across the continent from Iceland, officials said Saturday. The fine volcanic dust can clog jet engines, causing them to flame out in some cases, or leaving them irreparably damaged. "We have redeployed units to the south of France due to the closure of air space, to be able to ensure transport missions, patrols and policing of the skies", Major Frederic Solano told AFP. Aircraft assigned to permanent standby had been based at Dijon and Tours in the centre, Orange in...

Volcanic ash consists of tiny fragments of glass which melt at the operating temperature of jet engines. Skip related content Related photos / videos Volcanic ash may damage jet engines Enlarge photo .Sucked into the turbines, they clog up the engines and can shut them down, with potentially disastrous consequences. Hard ash particles can also damage an engine's fan blades, and may cause electrical systems to short-circuit. The sudden loss of power can cause a large passenger aircraft to go into freefall. At the same time the pilot is likely to be flying "blind" because of scratches left on the...

The cloud of ash caused by the eruption of a volcano in Iceland is forecast to spread south towards London today, adding to disruption of flights across the country.