A recent volcanic eruption in Chile has thrown Australian air travel into chaos overnight. In scenes reminiscent of last year's Icelandic volcanic ash cloud disruption in Europe we've woken to news that flights in and out of Melbourne were cancelled overnight. Tens of thousands of passengers have been affected as the three-day holiday weekend draws to a close.
Currently flights covering the lower southeast corner of Australia and across the Tasman have been disrupted as a dense ash cloud lingers 8,500 metres overhead. We're scheduled to fly from Melbourne at 7pm this evening however Qantas says no decision on the resumption of flights will be taken before noon today. We could be in for an interesting evening!
UPDATE: 9.15pm
We've arrived safely back in Sydney after an uneventful flight back from Melbourne. There were long queues waiting at the airport in Melbourne for new flight assignments at both the Qantas and Jetstar counters. At least one staff member from our Sydney office was caught up in the chaos and is now stranded in Melbourne for another 24 hours.
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• Location: Bourke St, Melbourne,Australia
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