Flights to and from Cardiff Airport have been cancelled this morning due to a cloud of volcanic ash hovering over Britain.
The freak flying conditions created by ash drifting over from a volcanic explosion in Iceland has caused massive delays and cancellations across the UK.
Airport officials at Cardiff Airport told me one flight will leave today and all others are cancelled.
The 11.25am flight to Sharm el-Sheikh will depart as normal, but 14 other departures scheduled for today going to places such as Edinburgh, Belfast, Alicante and Paris have all been cancelled.
A spokesperson for Cardiff Airport said:
"At the moment one one flight is due to operate. All other flights are cancelled and we are expecting UK airspace to close from midday so it is unlikely any other flights will operate.
"Passengers should check with their airline on whether new flights can be booked or for a refund."
Air traffic control are expected to open UK airspace again at 6pm today - but Cardiff Airport said flights are unlikely to resume this evening and passengers should continue to check their live flight information here.
Officials in Cardiff are also unsure whether flights will run as normal tomorrow and are waiting on more information from the national air traffic service.
Cardiff Airport's live flight information is currently showing 14 outbound flights and 15 arrivals cancelled. A statement on the airport's website reads:
"Due to the impact of volcanic ash over UK airspace, there are disruptions to all flights from Cardiff Airport.
"Passengers are advised to check with their airlines or tour operators before travelling to the airport."
We'll be updating this blogpost throughout the day with any new information.
Update: 11:34 Listen to Steve Hodgetts - Business Development Director at Cardiff Airport talk about the delays to Real Radio Wales here.
Read why the ash is bad for planes here. ]
Update: 12:03 If you are trying to get to Dublin or Belfast you might want to look into the ferry service:
Phil Jones, Chief Executive of Fastnet Line, says:
"Due to the impact of volcanic ash over UK airspace, all flights in and out of Cardiff International Airport have been grounded including flights to Dublin and Belfast. Passengers needing to travel can take advantage of the Swansea Cork sailings which leave Swansea at 9pm on Friday, Sunday and Wednesday and return from Cork at the same times on Thursday, Saturday and Tuesday.
"We have availability on sailings today and tomorrow and we have already seen an uplift in bookings this morning from passengers choosing the service as an alternative to waiting for flight restrictions to be lifted. We advise passengers to book in advance and check availability via our website www.fastnetline.co.uk."
Update: 14:39 National air traffic service announces no new flights until 6am tomorrow morning following Met Office advice. More on the guardian news blog here.
Update: 14:54 Cardiff Airport officials have confirmed the airport will be closed until 7am tomorrow morning. Following the announcement from the national air traffic service there will be no inbound or outbound flights until the airport reopens.
Business development director at Cardiff Airport, Steve Hodgetts said:
"Even with 9/11 we had still had aircrafts moving in some areas. We're looking at something which is completely unique here."
Airport officials could not say at this time whether flights will resume as normal from 7am tomorrow morning - the national air service will give them 16 hours advance notice before UK air space reopens.
We'll keep you updated on the blog later today.
Update: Friday 16 April 08:57 Cardiff Airport told me they just heard from national air traffic service and all flights in the UK have been suspended now until 0100 on Saturday. The time when UK airspace will be reopened keeps being pushed back, airport officials told me, from 1pm today, to 7pm today and now to 1am on Saturday. Passengers are still being advised to contact their airline provider to sort out re-bookings and refunds. Keep me updated with your travel plans if they have been disrupted.
Update: Friday 16 April 10:34 Ferry services between Swansea and Cork have seen an increase of 100% in foot passengers, and 50% in vehicle traffic as a result of flights being grounded.
Phil Jones, Chief Executive of Fastnet Line, said:
"Due to the ongoing impact of volcanic ash over UK airspace, grounding all flights across the country, we have had a significant increase in bookings on our Swansea – Cork service.
"Over the past 24 hours, foot passenger bookings have increased by 100%, whilst vehicle traffic has increased by 50%.
"Passengers needing to travel to Ireland can take advantage of the Swansea Cork sailings which leave Swansea at 9pm on Friday, Sunday and Wednesday and return from Cork at the same times on Saturday and Tuesday.
"We do still have some availability on weekend sailings however with planes grounded until early Saturday morning we're expecting demand to be high for the weekend sailings as an alternative to waiting for flight restrictions to be lifted.
"We advise passengers to book in advance and check availability via our website www.fastnetline.co.uk"
Have your travel plans been affected? Let us know in the comments below, on Twitter @GdnCardiff or by emailing cardiff.local@guardian.co.uk
