Flights have resumed at Sicily's busiest airport after a two-day closure following volcanic activity at Mount Etna.
In a statement, Catania Airport said: "Following the downgrade of the volcanic activity alert level from red to orange, flight operations have been cleared to resume with immediate effect."
However, passengers are still "strongly advised" to check the status of their flight with their airline before travelling to the airport.
Flights were suspended on 5 and 6 July, with dozens of flights between diverted to Palermo Airport.
The latest Volcano Observatory Notice for Aviation, issued in at around 7 am CEST, noted that ash emissions were "diminishing" and "confined to the summit area", hence the downgrade to orange alert.
The Italian Department of Civil Protection raised its alert level for Europe’s most active volcano from green to yellow on 26 June at 7.30 pm following an “increase in volcanic tremors”. That alert level remains in place.
Spectacular drone footage from last week showed rivers of lava flowing down the volcano.
Catania Airport, which is located around 45 kilometres away from Mount Etna, is served by airlines including Ryanair, easyJet, Wizz Air, KLM and Lufthansa, among others.
