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Ash cloud leads to more Indonesia flight cancellations

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Flights to and from the Indonesian holiday island of Bali are being disrupted due to an ash cloud from an active volcano that erupted last week.


Ash from Mount Ruang, which erupted last Thursday, has drifted towards Denpasar airport, causing visibility issues.


The volcano is about 150 kilometres from the airport.


Jetstar and Virgin Australia cancelled flights from points such as Perth and Brisbane to Bali.


Malaysia Airlines said flights in and out of Denpasar today (Friday) will be cancelled.


The moves follow flight cancellations last week and at the weekend due to the ash.


Jatsar said: “We’ve seen unfavourable winds push the ash cloud even closer to Denpasar airport this morning and we’re not satisfied it is safe to operate services in these conditions.


“We’ll continue to closely monitor the ash cloud with the Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre.


“We regret the disruption these cancellations have caused travellers, but the safety of our customers and crew is our first priority.”


Virgin said passengers whose flights had been cancelled would be able to change their flight or receive a travel credit.


“The safety of our guests and crew is our highest priority, and we will keep customers updated as new information becomes available,” the carrier said.


The Foreign and Commonwealth Office said the volcanic activity was affecting flights to and from regional airports in Indonesia including Ngurah Rai, Lombok, Selaparang, Blimbinsari, Banyuwangi and Notohadinegro.

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