Volcanic Ash Halts Flights to North Australian City

Sydney: Virgin Australia cancelled flights to Bali's Denpasar airport late Saturday, as did Qantas offshoot Jetstar.

Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss said it could take days for Australian services to return to normal.

"Depending on wind and other weather conditions, the ash has the potential to affect flights to and from other airports, including Brisbane, during coming days," he said.

"This is currently being fully assessed."

Airservices Australia has reportedly begun diverting international flights around the ash plume.

Australian aviation authorities recommend against flights into areas with visible volcanic ash clouds because the fine particles are hazardous to aircraft engines.

A spokeswoman for Darwin International Airport told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation it was not known when flights would resume.

"At this stage it's speculation... from what I can tell, as the ash moves it dissipates so it could be good news for tomorrow," she said.

"But going on past experience, this is usually [a] 24-hour type event."