Pope flight to Malta escapes ash ban
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Pope Benedict XVI's flight to Malta is one of relatively few scheduled to leave on Saturday from Rome. Leonardo da Vinci airport was still operating but many flights were canceled because of the no-fly zone in northern Italy and much of elsewhere in Europe due to the eruption of Iceland's volcano.
Benedict's chartered Alitalia flight is scheduled to leave for Malta at about 5.30 pm (1530 GMT). He flies back Sunday evening. His papacy and the Catholic church are being rocked by widening scandals over clerical sex abuse and cover-ups by hierarchy. (AP)
