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Catania-Fontanarossa airport has once again been brought to a standstill because of volcanic activity on Mount Etna, which has forced the authorities to halt flight operations. Sac, the company that manages the airport, has announced the closure of the relevant airspace because of the heavy emission of ash into the atmosphere and unfavourable wind conditions.
All arrivals and departures have officially been suspended until 23:59 on Sunday 27 September. Flights were initially halted until 12:00, before the stop was extended. In a bid to limit disruption, the company has urged passengers not to go to the terminal without first checking the status of their flight with their respective airlines.
On Saturday the shutdown had serious repercussions across the entire regional transport network. The suspension of flights has in fact triggered a domino effect at other Sicilian airports such as Comiso, Palermo and Trapani, which suddenly became congested with the many aircraft diverted there in emergency. The handling of this situation, which left thousands of travellers stranded and searching for alternative solutions, quickly turned a logistical breakdown into an economic and industrial-relations dispute.
Risk of speculative air fares and criticism from trade unions
The paralysis has provoked a strong reaction from associations, which denounce the risk of speculation on air fares at a moment of great vulnerability for citizens. Acli Terra has reported abnormal increases and prohibitive costs for flights to and from the island, highlighting extreme cases such as a Verona–Palermo route shooting up to around 1,180 euros. Emphasising that a natural emergency must not be allowed to turn into economic damage for families, the association has called on the authorities to monitor price rises, stressing that the ability to manage recurring events directly affects the credibility and reputation of the Sicilian system as a whole.
In the same vein, transport unions are pointing the finger at organisational shortcomings, describing the situation as “total chaos”. Filt Cgil, Fit Cisl and Uiltrasporti Sicilia express dismay at the absence of any contingency plan for an Etna eruption, a phenomenon they now consider structural rather than unforeseeable. According to the unions, those paying the highest price are airline and ground staff, forced to face passengers’ exasperation in conditions of extreme stress and without clear guidelines.
The unions are therefore once again urging the Region to sign a permanent protocol that would establish reliable operational flows and adequate protections, finally moving beyond the ineffective logic of constant emergency.