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Reuters Europe's skies were open for business on Wednesday but with so many planes having been grounded by the pall of volcanic ash spreading from Iceland it could take days or weeks to clear the backlog.
About 75 percent of flights in Europe will operate on Wednesday -- some 21,000 of the 28,000 flights normally scheduled, European air traffic agency Eurocontrol said.
Almost all of European airspace below 20,000 feet was available, with restrictions in some areas such as southern Sweden and Helsinki.
"It is anticipated that these restrictions will gradually be lifted throughout the day," Eurocontrol said in a statement.
Britain, a global air hub as well as a busy destination in its own right, reopened its airspace on Tuesday night, giving a huge boost to travelers and air freight.
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