Indian airlines Air India and Akasa Air announced on Tuesday that they were canceling some flights after ash plumes from a volcano eruption in Ethiopia disrupted operations.
Air India said it had cancelled 11 flights on Monday and Tuesday to conduct precautionary checks on aircraft that had flown over certain locations after the eruption, following a directive from India’s aviation regulator.
Smaller peer Akasa said it had scrapped scheduled flights with Middle East destinations such as Jeddah, Kuwait, and Abu Dhabi scheduled during the two days.
The ash cloud is moving towards China and is expected to clear Indian skies by 1400 GMT Tuesday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said in a statement.
⚡️Ethiopian volcano erupts after 12,000 years, ash reaches Delhi amid toxic air.
The ash first entered Gujarat and drifted towards Rajasthan, Delhi, Haryana, and Punjab. #EthopianVolcano #Delhi pic.twitter.com/doXXKi8Hcb
— The Tatva (@thetatvaindia) November 25, 2025
Ethiopia’s Hayli Gubbi volcano sent ash plumes up to 14 km (8.7 miles) high after erupting on Sunday for the first time in recorded history, according to media reports.
On Tuesday, the ash had covered parts of Pakistan and northern India, according to tracking website Flightradar24, after crossing Yemen and Oman and the Indian capital Delhi through the Red Sea.
Read more: Karachi to Get 375 Streets and Major Roads Rebuilt as CM Releases Rs. 25 billion
Several international domestic flights have been cancelled, delayed, or rerouted in India because of the ash, with the country’s aviation regulator asking airlines to strictly avoid affected areas. The level of ash contamination currently is unclear; however, experts believe that it is unlikely to impact the air quality in Delhi, which is already very poor, as per official readings.
According to SkyMetWeather, a private organization, it is currently unclear as to how long the ashes will take to disperse, but the Indian Meteorological Department anticipates that the ashes will clear out by Tuesday evening.
In a statement on X, the local Indian airline IndiGo said that it was tracking the situation in coordination with international aviation bodies. Mumbai airport has also asked passengers to check the status of the flight before leaving for the airport. India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation issued an advisory to flight operators asking pilots to immediately report in case of any suspected ash encounter, including engine performance, anomalies, or cabin smoke.
According to NDTV, environmentalist Vimlendu Jha has stated that the ash cloud from the volcano in Ethiopia is currently moving over Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Delhi.
With Additional Inputs from GVS South Asia Desk