Several airports across Central Europe have been forced to close or operate at reduced capacity due to extreme icing conditions, leaving travellers stranded. Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport announced a temporary closure on Tuesday, citing “increased safety risks” from black ice and extreme icing. All arrivals and departures were suspended after an Ethiopian Airlines cargo flight skidded off a taxiway onto grass, becoming stuck.
Vienna International Airport resumed operations from 11am local time after a morning closure caused by a thick layer of ice that repeatedly reformed on runways despite clearing efforts. Flights were diverted to other airports during the shutdown.
Prague's Vaclav Havel Airport operated in a “very limited mode” on Tuesday, with delays expected throughout the day and arrivals restricted while staff de-iced the main runway. Bratislava's airport also closed until 11.15am local time due to weather conditions.
The disruptions follow extreme cold in northern Finland, where Kittilä Airport in Finnish Lapland cancelled flights over the weekend as temperatures dropped to minus 37C. The cold snap, more severe than in previous years, has affected wide regions of northern, central and eastern Europe.
