The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has closed a number of airports in Scotland and Northern Ireland as the risk from volcanic ash continues to grow across the UK.

Following a decision earlier this morning, Glasgow, Prestwick, Stornoway and Benbecula airports are now closed, with services not expected to resume until at least 19:00 today.

Inverness airport is also closed, but is expected to reopen in the early afternoon.

In Northern Ireland, Belfast International and Belfast City airports were scheduled to close between 13:00 and 19:00.

The CAA also warned Edinburgh, Carlisle, Blackpool, Liverpool and Manchester airports were at risk of closure if the concentration of ash in a 60 nautical mile buffer zone increased significantly.

Yesterday operations at airports in Northern Ireland and west Scotland were temporarily suspended following a CAA decision.

“The situation remains changeable, so passengers expecting to travel from airports in Scotland, Northern Ireland, the north of England and North Wales should contact their airlines to check whether their flight is operating,” explained the CAA in a statement.

“Based on current forecasts, the CAA does not expect airports in the South East of England to be affected.”

Eyjafjallajökull

In April planes across the UK and much of Europe were grounded for a total of six days, as a plume of ash from the Eyjafjallajökull Volcano drifted across Europe.

The fresh disruption this week comes as European Union transport ministers meet in Brussels to discuss plans to minimise disruption from future events of this kind.

Plans include the acceleration of proposals to create a “single European regulator for a single European sky”.