Western Europe to see warmer than average spring - WSI

* March-April to be warmer than normal for northern Europe

* Colder April for UK; warmer than normal otherwise

* A lot of intra-seasonal variability expected

LONDON, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Most of Europe will see a warmer than normal spring after a winter blasted by cold shots and storms, Weather Services International (WSI) said on Tuesday.

U.S. based WSI said that northeastern Europe and western Russia will see the coldest March weather, while much of Western Europe will experience a milder southwesterly flow.

Temperatures will, however, vary a lot within the season, WSI said.

"For April and May, the objective guidance suggests that the blocking will finally relax, with milder temperatures developing across northern Europe and any below-normal temperatures confined to western and southern sections," said Todd Crawford, WSI chief meteorologist.

Blocking patterns are stationary weather conditions that allow for certain weather types to dominate regions for long periods of time.

For Europe, a blocking event is often associated with a breakdown of its dominant westerly, Atlantic wind conditions that are replaced with colder and drier easterly or northerly winds.

WSI said climate models suggested that in April and May, northern mainland Europe will be warmer than normal.

The UK is expected to be cooler than normal in April, but warm up above the norm in May.

Below is a breakdown of WSI's forecast by month and region.

MARCH:

Nordic Region - Colder than normal Finland, warmer than normal elsewhere

UK - Warmer than normal

Northern Mainland - Warmer than normal

Southern Mainland - Warmer than normal, except Iberia

APRIL:

Nordic Region - Warmer than normal

UK - Cooler than normal

Northern Mainland - Warmer than normal

Southern Mainland - Warmer than normal, except Iberia

MAY:

Nordic Region - Warmer than normal

UK - Warmer than normal

Northern Mainland - Warmer than normal

Southern Mainland - Cooler than normal

MAP:

http://wsi.com/Collateral/Images/English-US/EU%20Map.jpg (Reporting By Dasha Afanasieva; editing by James Jukwey)