Perilous
Times
Indonesian Volcano Eruption stops air travel to Bali
* From: AAP
* January 27, 2011 7:59PM
THE travel plans of hundreds of Australians have been thrown into
disarray after an Indonesian volcano erupted, spewing a large
cloud of ash into the air.
The eruption of the Tengger Caldera volcano, on Java, forced the
cancellation of five Jetstar flights tonight.
Flights were due to take off from Sydney and Darwin for Denpasar
on the popular tourist island of Bali.
Three flights from Denpasar to Perth, Sydney and Darwin were also
grounded by the budget airline.
A sixth Jetstar flight from Perth to Denpasar was diverted to
Darwin and is due to return to Perth.
"Safety of our passengers and crew is Jetstar's number one
priority and as a result the airline has cancelled tonight's
flights between Australia and Denpasar (Bali)," a Jetstar
statement said.
"The airline is closely monitoring the situation and will advise
passengers should there be any further impact. No other services
are affected at this stage."
It remains unclear if other airlines are affected.
Calls to Virgin Blue went unanswered tonight.
Qantas does not fly to Denpasar.
A Garuda Indonesia flight from Sydney to Denpasar was listed as
having departed at 12.20pm (AEDT) on today.
The Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre, part of the Bureau of
Meteorology, issued an advisory today saying Tengger Caldera had
erupted, with ash extending 200 nautical miles northeast.
Thousands of Australians flying to and from Europe faced chaos
last year because of volcanic eruptions in Iceland.