Istanbul Permits First Flight After Snow Pummels Mediterranean

Europe's busiest airport in Istanbul welcomed its first flight in 24 hours on Tuesday and Greece declared a public holiday as the eastern Mediterranean neighbours began digging themselves out of a rare snowstorm that ground their capitals to a halt.

Turkish officials ordered all private vehicles off the snow-clogged streets of Istanbul while the Greek military joined rescuers in trying to evacuate hundreds of stranded drivers in Athens.

Major highways were closed across both countries and basic services such as food delivery shut down.

But much of the international attention focused on the fate of Istanbul's main airport -- a gleaming glass-and-steel structure that offers connecting flights spanning much of the world.

A blizzard on Monday closed Istanbul Airport for the first time since it took over from the old Ataturk Airport as the new hub for Turkish Airlines in 2019.

Its press service pushed back its planned reopening hours a handful times before admitting defeat and shutting it down for the night.

It tweeted an image on Tuesday of the first flight since Monday afternoon landing from the Venezuelan capital Caracas after one of the runways was cleared to accept a few airborne flights.

But Turkish Airlines decided to suspend operations at its main international hub until midnight.

All the main scheduled international departures were either cancelled or delayed for the second day running.

Istanbul Airport serviced more than 37 million passengers last year despite disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Yet President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's critics had long questioned his decision to place the airport on a remote patch along the Black Sea coast that is often covered with fog in winter.

Istanbul's second airport on its Asian side near the Sea of Marmara stayed open throughout the storm.

Numerous passengers stuck aboard stranded flights took to Twitter to air their grievances with the airport's customer service and lack of updates.

"Not even a bottle of water offered. Zero concern for women with children," user Chris Wiggett wrote in a typical tweet.

"Not even blankets for stranded passengers at night."

Images tweeted from inside the packed airport on Tuesday showed a frustrated crowd chanting "we need a hotel".

A burst of sunshine over the city of 16 million people on Tuesday raised hopes that the storm had finally passed and normal life could slowly start to resume.

But forecasts warned of more possible snow on Tuesday evening and officials ordered all cars off the streets.

The mayor's office some parts of Istanbul had recorded 85 centimetres (2.8 feet) of snow.

The Istanbul governor'a office closed the region's universities until Monday and announced a temporary suspension of non-emergency traffic into city from its Asian and European sides.

The situation appeared just as chaotic in Greece.

The Athens public prosecutor's office opened an investigation as officials traded blame over who was responsible for the closure of the city's main road leading to the Greek capital's international airport.

Greek civil protection minister Christos Stylianides issued a formal apology on Monday.

The management company issued its own apology.

But it also said the problems were due to "vehicle breakdowns or to the lack of experience of motorists, some of whom were afraid".