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Flights to mainland operating again on a limited basis
Hundreds still stranded on Svalbard; those departing still stuck in northern part of Norway until at least Monday

Passengers enter Svalbard Airport at about 2 p.m. Friday to catch a flight to Bodø after airspace was reopened in the northern part of mainland Norway. Flights were cancelled Thursday due to a massive cloud of ash from an Icelandic volcano that disrupted thousands of flights in Europe. The Svalbard flight was originally destined for Trondheim, but because that airport remained closed the plane departed after a delay of about two hours for Bodø. The first inbound flight to Svalbard since eruption landed Saturday afternoon carrying passengers from Bodø.

Flights between Svalbard and mainland Norway are operating again on a limited basis as a massive cloud of volcanic ash has cleared over the northern part of the country.

A flight departed Svalbard for Bodø late Friday afternoon, with an inbound Bodø flight arriving in Svalbard at about 3 p.m. Saturday. Another flight from Tromsø was scheduled to land Saturday evening.

Air ambulance and other emergency service to the mainland is also available again, but the Svalbard governor's office is keeping in touch with Coast Guard in case vessel transportation is necessary, said Sgt. Erik Nygaard.

"The situation can change from hour to hour," he said.

Air traffic between Svalbard and the mainland was halted Thursday following Wednesday's eruption of a volcano in the Eyjafjallajokull region of Iceland. The resulting ash cloud has resulted in Europe's largest air travel shutdown since World War II, with millions of passengers stranded worldwide.

Hundreds of passengers remain stranded in Svalbard as of Saturday and officials said the situation for some is becoming desperate.

"There are people who need to be at a funeral, others in foreign countries and we have heard about a father who cannot come down to a birth in progress on the mainland," said Tone Bendiktsen, a Scandinavian Airlines ground service worker, in an interview with Svalbardposten.

SAS, which cancelled 635 flights Thursday and 742 flights Friday, said Saturday most its flights will remain grounded until at least Monday. The company also warned it might be forced to temporarily lay off up to 2,500 workers if flights remain grounded longer.

"We can't fly. Our entire fleet is on the ground ... there is nothing for them to do," said Elisabeth Manzy, an SAS spokesperson.

Flights within Svalbard and to North Pole expeditions were not affected by the eruption since the ash cloud didn't extend to the area. But Longyearbyen hotels have been filled to capacity as expeditions and field workers return to town, and stores and restaurants are short of perishables. Fresh supplies are scheduled to arrive soon by ship, according to the governor's office.

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