Ash from the Chilean volcano is set to continue to frustrate airline passengers with Qantas and Jetstar cancelling all flights to and from of New Zealand this morning.
Australian national carrier Qantas and its budget airline Jetstar said trans-Tasman and New Zealand domestic flights would remain cancelled until at least 2pm
New Zealand time.
The disruptions and cancellations have left thousands of frustrated travellers stranded on both sides of the Tasman
A statement from Qantas said it would continue to monitor the situation and advised passengers to check its website for updates.
``The Qantas Group's approach to flying is based on the highest standards of safety and risk assessment.
``Safety is always put before schedule,'' the statement said.
Jetstar said it was ``exploring every option'' to help thousands of stranded passengers, including putting on extra flights when it could.
It said the safety of its passengers and crew was its main priority and it would not fly into air space that remained affected by the ash cloud ``until we are confident that it is safe to do so.''
Qantas and Jetstar have resumed all Australian flights except for those in and out of Tasmania.
Meanwhile, Air New Zealand has continued to fly on trans-Tasman routes at a lower altitude to avoid ash cloud from the Chilean volcano.
The airline is flying well below the ash cloud which has a ceiling of 8229 metres (27,000ft) but it is burning 10 percent more fuel.
Air NZ said yesterday it had operated about 1000 flights and carried more than 50,000 passengers since the ash arrived in New Zealand airspace on Sunday.
Chief pilot Captain David Morgan said the ash cloud was at a very high altitude and its movement was predictable.
``By adjusting cruising altitudes of our aircraft we are able to continue to safely deliver customers to their destinations.
``Lower cruising altitudes mean we need to burn around 10 percent more fuel than normal, but we don't believe that's a reason to stop flying when there are perfectly safe flight paths available below the level of the ash.''
Virgin Blue, Emirates, Singapore Airlines, Air Asia X, Air Pacific, Malaysia Airlines, Thai Airways, Cathay Pacific, Korean Air and others were also flying in and out of New Zealand, he said.
