Air India, Akasa Cancel Flights After Ethiopian Volcano Erupts: How the Ash Cloud Disrupted India–Gulf Routes

An ancient volcano in Ethiopia erupted for the first time in thousands of years, sending a huge cloud of ash high into the atmosphere and disrupting flight routes across parts of Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia. The Hayli Gubbi volcano, in Ethiopia’s Afar region, erupted on Sunday, throwing ash up to around 14 km (45,000 feet) into the sky and pushing a long plume of ash eastward over the Red Sea, Yemen, Oman, Pakistan and eventually into Indian airspace.​

By Monday evening, satellite images and weather models showed the ash had reached western India, passing over Gujarat and then drifting across Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Delhi-NCR, Haryana, and Punjab. The ash cloud contained fine particles of volcanic glass and rock, along with sulphur dioxide, and was travelling at 100–120 km/h at cruising altitudes used by commercial jets.​

Why Airlines Cancelled Flights

Volcanic ash is extremely dangerous for aircraft. The tiny glass-like particles can melt inside jet engines, damage turbine blades, clog filters and sensors, scratch cockpit windows, and even cause engines to fail. Because of this, aviation authorities around the world follow a strict “zero tolerance” approach: if ash is detected along a flight path, aircraft must avoid it, even if that means diversions or cancellations.

On Monday, India’s aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), issued an advisory instructing airlines to review routes, monitor ash forecasts, and, if necessary, cancel or divert flights to avoid the plume. Airports were also told to check runways and aircraft surfaces for any signs of ash contamination that might affect safety or visibility.

Following this, Air India and Akasa Air announced cancellations on routes that could be affected by the ash cloud. The decisions were made as precautionary safety measures, in line with global best practices and DGCA guidance.​

Air India: 11 Flights Grounded for Safety Checks

Air India said it cancelled 11 flights on Monday and Tuesday after the volcano erupted, mainly on international routes that might have crossed the ash plume. The airline also grounded and inspected aircraft that had flown over specific regions after the eruption, to make sure engines and other components were safe before they flew again.​

The airline did not list every affected route publicly, but reports indicate the cancellations were focused on long-haul or West-bound flights whose paths could have intersected with the drifting cloud. Passengers were offered rebooking options and advised to check the airline’s website or contact support for updated information.​

Akasa Air: India–Gulf Flights Cancelled

Akasa Air, a newer Indian carrier, was also significantly affected. The airline said it cancelled all flights to and from Jeddah, Kuwait and Abu Dhabi scheduled for November 24 and 25, directly citing the Ethiopian volcanic ash plume and the resulting unsafe conditions in parts of the surrounding airspace.​

In a statement, Akasa explained that volcanic ash along the India–Gulf corridor could pose a serious risk to aircraft safety and that avoiding those paths or flying at different altitudes was not always possible given air traffic and routing constraints. As a result, cancellations were the safest option. Passengers on these routes were informed via email, SMS, and app notifications and were offered full refunds or fee-free rebooking.​

Wider Impact on Air Travel

Other airlines, including IndiGo and some international carriers such as KLM, also adjusted schedules, cancelled flights, or planned diversions on affected routes. Flights between India and the Gulf, as well as some Europe-bound services that would normally cross Arabian Peninsula airspace, were on watch for delays or rerouting.​

SpiceJet and other Indian airlines issued travel advisories for customers flying to and from Dubai and other Gulf destinations, warning them of possible delays due to changing ash patterns over Oman, Yemen, and the Arabian Sea.​

By Tuesday, Indian authorities reported that seven international flights had been cancelled and at least a dozen delayed due to the ash. However, domestic operations within India remained mostly functional, though some routes were adjusted to avoid higher concentrations of ash.​

What the Meteorological Department Says

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the cloud of ash that passed over India was not expected to linger for long. Forecasts showed that the plume would keep moving northeast and exit most of Indian airspace by around 7:30 pm IST (14:00 GMT) on Tuesday as it drifted toward China.​

While the ash made skies in parts of north and west India appear hazier and slightly darker than normal, experts stressed that the eruption would not significantly impact ground-level air quality or weather conditions in the country. The primary concern was at cruising altitudes for jets, not on the surface.​

About the Hayli Gubbi Volcano

Hayli Gubbi is a shield volcano located in Ethiopia’s Afar region, an area already known for strong tectonic activity. Geologists say this volcano had not erupted for at least 10,000–12,000 years, making Sunday’s event the first recorded eruption in human history. During the initial eruption, ash rose as high as 14 km into the atmosphere, making it easily carried by high-level winds across continents.

The eruption did not cause major immediate damage on the ground in Ethiopia, and there were no reports of widespread evacuations linked directly to Hayli Gubbi itself as of Tuesday. However, the visual spectacle and the far-reaching ash plume highlighted how a single volcanic event in East Africa could ripple through global aviation networks in a matter of hours.​

What Travellers Should Do

For passengers booked on Air India, Akasa, or other airlines on India–Gulf or Africa–Europe routes, the simplest advice is: check before you travel. Airlines are updating status frequently as they track the ash, and conditions are changing hour by hour.

• Confirm your flight status on the airline’s official website or app before leaving for the airport.
• Look for emails or text messages from your airline regarding cancellations, rebookings, or route changes.
• If your flight is cancelled, airlines are generally offering free date changes or full refunds.
• Allow extra time at the airport in case of delays or last-minute gate or schedule changes.

Most importantly, understand that cancellations and diversions in such situations are for safety. Volcanic ash can significantly damage aircraft, and it is far safer to cancel a flight than to risk flying through a contaminated area.

When Will Things Return to Normal?

The good news is that volcanic ash plumes move and dissipate relatively quickly once the eruption stops. IMD and international volcanic ash advisory centers, such as the Toulouse VAAC, expect the Hayli Gubbi ash cloud to continue drifting away from the Indian subcontinent and toward eastern Asia, reducing the risk to Indian aviation routes over the next day or so.​

The eruption itself appears to have ended, though scientists will continue to monitor the volcano in case of renewed activity. Once the ash plume fully clears important flight corridors and upper-level winds shift, airlines are expected to gradually restore normal schedules.

For now, travellers and airlines alike are reminded of a basic lesson: nature still has the power to disrupt even the best-planned human systems. As with Iceland’s famous 2010 eruptions that grounded flights across Europe, the Ethiopian event is another reminder that safety in the air sometimes depends on respecting forces far beyond our control.

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