By IRNA,
Berlin : German no-fly ban has been extended until 2 pm (1200GMT) Tuesday, however air travel restrictions have been eased since Monday afternoon, according to media reports.
Several German airliners, among them Lufthansa and Air Berlin, have resumed flights at the country’s major airports with a limited schedule.
The planes are flying at a low altitude, enabling pilots to navigate by sight.
German aviation authorities were under intense pressure by the airline industry to partially lift the flight ban, especially since test flights run Sunday and Monday by several European airlines proceeded without any problems.
Germany’s airspace has mostly remained closed since Thursday as a result of a
volcanic ash cloud from Iceland which is drifting across Europe.
Tens of thousands of 63,000 flights have been cancelled across Europe, according to
the flight safety authority Eurocontrol, which coordinates flights between different European airspaces.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) estimates that the disruptions are costing the airline industry at least 150 million euros a day.