Funeral Plans Remain in Place for Sunday
The funeral for the late president of Poland and his wife will go forward despite the closure of many major airports from London to Frankfurt, and all Polish airspace.
Nearly 100 dignitaries from around the world, along with thousands of Poles, were expected to travel to Krakow for Sunday’s funeral. A volcano in Iceland has been erupting and spewing ash in the atmosphere at an altitude where most jet airlines operate. The ash can interfere with the function of the engines, resulting in their failure mid-flight. As a result, airlines will not fly into ash clouds and airports affected by the cloud are closed.
According to reports, the family of Lech and Maria Kaczyński have asked that the funeral proceed according to plan on Sunday at 2 p.m. The funeral mass will be said, in Latin, at Mariacki Church in Krakow’s Main Square, followed by a procession of the family to Wawel Cathedral where the first couple will be interred.
Meanwhile, Krakow airport is asking visitors to check on their flight status with their airlines and not the airport.
Please see Krakow Airport Information for updates about the airports in Krakow and the region.
See also: Polish Tragedy in Smolensk: Key events, news updates, list of victims