Originally posted by the Voice of America. Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America, a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in the public domain. European Air Traffic Close to Normal VOA News 22 April 2010 European air traffic was expected to be almost back to normal Thursday, after a huge cloud of volcanic ash from Iceland turned nearly all of Europe into a no-fly zone for six days. Europe's air traffic control agency, Eurocontrol, said about three-quarters of all European flights took place as scheduled Wednesday, as governments ended flight restrictions across the continent. But thousands of passengers remain stuck in airports and hotels. Eurocontrol said the volcanic ash caused about 95,000 flight cancellations since last Thursday. The International Air Transport Association called the cancellations "devastating," saying they cost the airline industry almost $2 billion ($1.7 billion). The group's chief, Giovanni Bisignani, urged governments to look at ways to compensate airlines for their losses. Two major European travel agencies - Thomas Cook and TUI - criticized the British government for shutting down its airspace. But Britain's Civil Aviation Authority said the main barrier to resuming flights had been determining how much ash aircraft could tolerate. Scientists said flying thorough volcanic ash could cause jet engines to shut down in mid-flight. The volcano that caused the flight cancellations still was erupting Wednesday, but producing much less ash. The U.S. State Department said Wednesday it has helped U.S. citizens and others, including a group of Nazi concentration camp survivors who needed a new hotel and an elderly patient in Frankfurt needing specialized medical treatment. Among European efforts to help stranded passengers, Britain sent a warship to Spain to pick up civilians and troops on their way home from Afghanistan. Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters. .