South African Airways suspends flights due to ash clouds

SAA has suspended all evening flights to and from Port Elizabeth, Cape Town and East London due to ash clouds in the airspace.The ash clouds were caused by a volcano in Chile which erupted about two weeks ago.SAA spokesman Dileseng Koetle said the flight cancellations were a safety precaution measure.We are assessing the situation constantly and we will decide if necessary whether to cancel evening flights on Sunday as well.

Koetle said the daily operations would continue as scheduled, as only flights leaving after 5pm were affected.The Cape Town to London flight SA220, which was scheduled for departure last night, was rescheduled to leave today at 8am.Cape Town International was the worst affected of all three coastal airports.Deidre Hendricks, the airport's spokesman, said six domestic flights were cancelled yesterday.These flights were expected from OR Tambo International as well as one from Lanseria,she said.She urged those who are travelling in the next few days to contact airlines in order to confirm flight details.Koetle said all affected passengers will be accommodated overnight.Furthermore, an additional two flights out of Cape Town will be added on Sunday morning to accommodate affected customers,Koetle said.