A Notice to Airmen (NOTAM B7184/26) issued at 06:38 UTC on 13 November announced the immediate closure of runway 08/26 at Sicily’s Catania-Fontanarossa Airport. The shutdown is scheduled until 06:38 UTC on 16 November while contractors resurface touchdown zones damaged during the summer Etna ash episodes and reinforce runway lighting cables ahead of the winter timetable. During the works the aerodrome operates on reduced capacity using the shorter secondary strip for turboprops and regional jets only. ITA Airways, Ryanair and easyJet have already rerouted several A320 rotations to Palermo and Comiso, while DHL has moved night freighters to Naples. SAC, the airport operator, warns passengers to check flight status and expect busing from alternate airports; parking and rental-car bookings at Catania will be honoured but pick-up locations may change. Catania handles more than 10 million passengers a year and is a critical gateway for the booming Etna Valley semiconductor cluster. Delays therefore ripple into tight production-supply schedules. Multinationals with just-in-time components arriving via air cargo should monitor pallet re-dispatch and, where feasible, switch to the Augusta container short-sea link or arrange charter trucking from Palermo. Travel-risk teams should remind assignees that the Etna volcanic risk level remains ‘green’, but ash fall can prompt sudden air-space restrictions. The airport’s refurbishment plan schedules further night closures in late January, indicating an ongoing need to build flexible layovers into Sicilian itineraries.
Source: NOTAC NOTAM database
