Two flights between Bahrain and London were cancelled yesterday as Iceland's volcanic ash clouds returned to disrupt air travel around the UK and Ireland.

The 1.40am Gulf Air service from Bahrain International Airport (BIA) to London Heathrow and the 10am Gulf Air service in the opposite direction were both cancelled after air space around the English capital was closed for several hours.

Passengers due to travel on the flights were switched to later Gulf Air services, departing Bahrain at 10am and London at 8.25pm respectively, after Bahrain's national carrier took the decision to upgrade these services from A330 to A340 aircraft.

British Airways (BA) services between London and Bahrain ran almost on schedule, although the 1.40am service from BIA was delayed by more than three hours.

Several airports across Scotland, the north of England and Northern Ireland remained closed last night but could re-open today as the ash cloud is expected to move further north.

The Eyjafjallajokull volcano, in southeast Iceland, began erupting last month and after melting the 250-metre-thick glacier around it, caused severe flooding in the surrounding area.

It hurled a plume of ash six to 11km into the atmosphere before it spreading south-eastwards and wreaking havoc on much of Europe's airspace for several days.

The latest disruption coincides with the beginning of another round of strike action by BA cabin crew, which is due to begin today.

Eight BA flights between London and Bahrain have been cancelled over the next few days as bitter pay dispute between cabin crew and leading management continues.-TradeArabia News Service