Volcanic ash forces Virgin Australia to cancel flights

Virgin Australia Ltd. said that it will suspend flights in and out of the southern city of Adelaide on Tuesday as dust from a Chilean volcano returns to Australian airspace.

Last week, hundreds of flights were grounded stranding thousands of passengers when ash clouds hovered over Australia and New Zealand. All flights were running normally by Friday, but the ash surrounded the globe again.

The forecast advised that the ash plume will be below 20,000 feet over Adelaide and Mildura tomorrow. With this in mind we are suspending flights services on Tuesday, Sean Donohue, Virgin Australia's group executive for operations, said in a statement.

The airline has decided to cancel flights in and out of Adelaide and Port Lincoln until 0430 GMT on Tuesday, Qantas Airways Ltd. Spokesman told WSJ. Qantas will review the situation further early on Tuesday, he said.

Tiger Airways has canceled four flights between Adelaide and Melbourne and four flights between Sydney and Melbourne that were scheduled for Tuesday. The airline is continuing to monitor the situation, it said in a statement.

The Volcanic Ash Advisory Center on Monday said that the ash plumes might disrupt the air traffic in Sydney and Melbourne.