 SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) -- Heads-up for Alaska Air travelers, a number of west coast flights to and from Alaska have been canceled as a result of Thursday's volcanic eruption on the Aleutian Islands. That includes several San Francisco flights.
"Ash clouds are not good for aircraft engines," said Alaska Airline spokeswoman Marianne Lindsey.
The eruption of Kasatochi forced the speedy evacuation of several fish and game employees and caught the attention of the folks at the Alaska Volcano Observatory in Anchorage, who say that the ash was shot 40,000 feet into the air.
Day fights are mostly on schedule because during daylight hours pilots are able to see and to steer around ash clouds. San Francisco State Professor of Meteorology Jan Null says computer models of the atmosphere dictate areas to avoid.
"You take computer models of where the ash cloud is going to be, and you make it a no-fly zone," said Null, who expects the polar jet stream to disperse the ash cloud fairly quickly.
At least 44 flights to SFO, Denver, LA, Portland, Seattle, and Vancouver British Columbia were cancelled.
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KCBS' Tim Ryan reports
