Scottish airports were among the worst affected by flight disruption caused by the Icelandic volcanic ash cloud during April, according to new figures from operator BAA.

Passenger numbers for the group's three Scottish airports declined by more than 28 per cent as flights were cancelled due to a six-day lockdown of UK airspace. Glasgow Airport was the worst affected BAA airport, posting a drop of more than 29 per cent compared with March. Aberdeen (26 per cent) and Edinburgh (28.3 per cent) also reported sharp falls.

Compared with the same period for 2009, passenger traffic for the six BAA-operated airports in the UK declined by nearly 23 per cent to 6.9 million people. Meanwhile, Irish tourism minister Mary Hanafin met with a number of industry representatives to discuss how to address the impact of the ash cloud on the air travel.

The Irish Hotels Federation; B&B Ireland; Incoming Tour Operators Association; and the Irish Tourist Industry Confederation attended the meeting with the minister on 10 May. Tourism agency Fáilte Ireland is working with the Irish government to draw up a customer care charter that aims to boost confidence among operators and visitors.

Hanafin said: "This new charter, will address issues such as cancellations policy, pricing for delayed tourists, provision of timely information, internet accessibility and quality of services for all tourists affected by delayed travel plans due to volcanic ash." Elsewhere, budget airline easyJet has also revealed it was forced to cancel more than 6,000 flights as a result of the ash cloud chaos, which cost the company between £50-75m.

In its half year report ending 31 March 2010, the group said halting new sales to help repatriate stranded tourists and the cancellations will have a "significant impact" on its full-year performance. However, the airline did report a 13.3 per cent increase in revenue and a 39.4 per cent reduction in underlying losses during the six-month period, compared with last year.