Thousands of passengers have had their flights cancelled because of drifting ash from an Icelandic volcano.

About 500 flights were cancelled in Europe on Tuesday, air traffic management body Eurocontrol said.

Flights from some airports in Scotland and northern England would be affected until 0100 BST on Wednesday, air traffic services company Nats said.

But the transport secretary said there should not be significant disruption for UK airports after Tuesday night.

Services at Glasgow, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Barra, Prestwick, Cumbernauld, Tiree, Carlisle and Durham Tees Valley could be affected until early on Wednesday.

UK air traffic control service Nats said the latest information from the Met Office showed no volcanic ash was predicted in UK airspace from 0100 BST on Wednesday.

Nats said further updates would be made if the situation changed and passengers are advised to continue to check with their airline before travelling.

Meanwhile, Germany's Meteorological Service says airspace over the country's northern cities, including Bremen and Hamburg, will close from 0400 BST (0500 local time) because of elevated levels of ash in the atmosphere.

The UK's emergency response committee, Cobra, met earlier to discuss the knock-on effects of the ash cloud.

After the meeting, Transport Secretary Philip Hammond said there was cautious optimism for the coming days.

He said the ash plume had decreased in height and intensity, and south-westerly winds were predicted for the next two days which would move the cloud away from the UK.

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) divides the airspace into areas of high-, medium- and low-density ash, and airlines wishing to fly in areas of medium- or high-density ash need to get a safety case accepted by the authority.