A couple getting married in the UK this weekend has devised a backup plan that would allow relatives and friends stranded in Malta and other countries because of the volcanic ash cloud to see the ceremony online.
"The wedding is in less than a week and, although we are really excited, this volcanic ash situation has cast a cloud over the whole thing, excuse the pun," said Colin Zammit Lupi, the groom who will be tying the knot on Sunday.
According to the original plan, his best man should have arrived in the UK yesterday and his mother, two brothers and their families were to follow throughout the week.
After hearing that the cloud of ash, spewing from a volcano in Iceland, had grounded various flights to the UK, he and his fiancée Anna Watson immediately started working on a plan B.
"Last Saturday I booked alternative flights for everyone... My mother ended up with four flights booked in her name. I didn't really weigh the expenses at this point since it's all about getting my family and friends to be here on the day," he said.
"The grounding of planes also affected our flowers for the wedding. Most flowers like roses are imported and the florist is going to improvise with whatever she can find," he added.
In a reverse situation, a Maltese couple who live in the UK will be getting married in Malta on Saturday. These past couple of days have been a logistical nightmare for them to ensure they make it to the church on time.
What was meant to be a direct flight to Malta turned into a two-day journey involving a train to Paris and a flight from there following an overnight stay.
"I'm so stressed. I was meant to be in Malta on Tuesday (today) evening but now will be there on Thursday... There were several last minute preparations which I had to postpone. What I'm worried about is that one of my bridesmaids, who lives in London, may not make it on time," the bride-to-be said.
Although yesterday, UK travel authorities said it would be opening its airspace this morning, the bride said she would be wary of catching a flight in what may still be a dangerous situation.
Hundreds of tourists have been stranded in Malta because of the flights chaos.
Chris Aquilina was here on holiday with his wife and their three children. They were meant to leave last Sunday but will now be heading back to Bristol on Saturday... hopefully. "I've had to take an extra week off work which I'll have to make up for throughout the year... But I guess there are others in my situation," he said.
Since the Iceland volcano started spewing ash on Thursday, 434 flights to and from Malta have been cancelled, the Foreign Ministry and the Secretariat for Tourism said.
Eurocontrol, the European organisation for the safety of air navigation, said about 30 per cent of the total number of flights in Europe were expected to take place yesterday.
Apart from affecting the airlines, the grounding of planes has also had an impact on hotels.
Adrian Attard, from the Radisson SAS, said a number of guests checked out only to return and ask for their rooms back after realising their flights had been cancelled. But the hotel also had "a large number of cancellations" as people did not make it.
Similarly, the Corinthia Hotels chain and the Westin Dragonara experienced cancellations as well as booking extensions.
The Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association urged its members to exercise flexibility with stranded guests by maintaining contracted rates and not charging cancellation fees.
Air Malta, which has had to cancel its flights to northern European destinations, said it would continue adding extra flights to those airports that were still operational. The airline was also offering all ticketed clients a change of ticket to any operational airport without extra charge, or a full refund.
Maltese passengers who are overseas may contact the nearest Maltese embassy for assistance. Contact details of embassies can be found on www.foreign.gov.mt .