UAE national carrier Etihad Airways said it has resumed flights to and from Abu Dhabi Airport, after major disruptions caused by an early morning fog on Monday, which led to the temporary closure of the airport.

The airport runways were closed at 7.30am causing serious disruption to flights by all airlines, said a statement from Etihad Airways.

The airline then diverted 16 inbound flights to the neighbouring airports of Dubai World Central, Sharjah and Al Ain (UAE), Muscat (Oman) and Bahrain and delayed the arrival and departures of other services.

Following the reopening of the airport at 9.40am, all of the diverted flights have proceeded to Abu Dhabi, while delayed flights have begun departing, said the UAE national airline in a statement.

The other flights are being rescheduled to carry passengers to their final destination as soon as possible, and extra staff have been sent to Abu Dhabi International Airport to assist delayed passengers, it added.

Etihad Airways has warned that it expects further delays throughout the day as aircraft are repositioned and flights are rescheduled.

Passengers have been asked to contact the airline's contact centre on +971 (0) 2599 0000 or visit the Etihad website for more information on the status of flights.-TradeArabia News Service