European airports shut as freezing rain causes widespread disruption

LONDON

Airports across several European cities have been forced to close and flights disrupted as icy weather created hazardous conditions on runways.

Airports in Budapest in Hungary, Bratislava in Slovakia and Vienna in Austria were all temporarily shut on Tuesday morning because of the ice, according to local media reports.

In Vienna, a thick layer of ice formed on runways and, despite repeated efforts to clear it, continued to refreeze, a spokesperson for the airport said. Flights were being diverted to other airports as a result.

Freezing rain also caused major disruption further east.

Prague Airport said on the US social media company X that it was operating in a “very limited mode.”

Bratislava Airport was also forced to close temporarily due to icy conditions, although flights were expected to resume later in the day.

Budapest Airport said it had halted flights because of weather-related safety concerns. It warned that delays were expected throughout the day, with arrivals being limited while staff worked to de-ice the main runway.

In the UK, wintry conditions have also prompted weather warnings.

The Met Office has issued a yellow warning for ice covering much of western and northern Scotland from Tuesday to Wednesday.

A number of flood alerts and flood warnings remain in place following Storm Goretti.

A separate yellow weather warning for rain has been issued for southwest England on Thursday, raising the risk of further flooding in the region.

Met Office, the country's weather agency, said the risk of freezing rain, which can create severe ice hazards, is expected to decrease as the day progresses, with snowfall becoming more likely instead.

Freezing rain is a rare form of liquid precipitation that freezes almost instantly on contact with cold surfaces, creating dangerous icy conditions for transport and infrastructure.