Icelandic volcano stops flights in Europe

[killer]

Since Thursday an Icelandic volcano has been spewing ash out into the atmosphere to a height of about 25,000 meters. The winds have been carrying the ash south from Iceland to UK, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Netherlands, Germany, France, Spain, etc.

As a result all jet engined flights have been suspended. They may resume tomorrow but probably not as the wind pattern seems set for a few days.

Jet engines operate best at high altitude. Going through the paticles in the ash would cause engine failure. Propeller driven aircraft that fly low are unaffected.

The impact has an upside and a downside; the downside is that airline passengers are stranded whether they wish to depart or to land, whereas the upside is no jet vapour in the skies over northern Europe and no noise from above.

Now people are saying, "This is what it was like 50 years ago. Why do people need to fly?"

It is a good question. Any thoughts?

[GomJabbar]

The last time that volcano erupted, the eruption lasted 2 years (that's what I heard on the news). Will the interruption last 2 years?

Oddly, the international airport in the west of Iceland is not currently affected and is open for business!

[killer]

Hi GomJabbar,

They have west winds in Iceland so they are OK to take off and land. Here the winds at altitude are driving the ash south. As there is high pressure to the north this is likely to persist for days. So flights from Iceland can take off towards the major countries of Europe but cannot land.

However, the hiatus has asked many people here why people fly so much?

The old excuse was that business people needed to go to meetings. Now businesses are wondering whether Video conferencing might be more efficient and cost-effective.

It is an interesting scene. We have people on the news who are frantic because they cannot get to Papua New Guinea, and others asking why they have to go there at all.

[GomJabbar]

I was just talking to my wife earlier today...
Can you imagine being on holiday in the UK just now, near the end of your holiday and the end of your money? What if it took weeks before you could get home and back to your job? Where would you stay and what would you do for food in the meantime? Scary!

Sidenote: I accidently just edited your last post with my post above. Fortunately I was able to use the back button of my browser to restore your content.

[qviri]

Now people are saying, "This is what it was like 50 years ago. Why do people need to fly?"

It is a good question. Any thoughts?

We don't need to fly. It just happens to currently be the fastest, most convenient way of moving between places we want to move for distances of certain magnitude. The world has shrunk and by and large we are better off for it.

Vacation travel is obviously a big component -- it's nice if your two weeks off aren't all spent on the trip itself -- but even in other cases, sometimes there is nothing quite like being there in person. Obviously video conferencing and so on can and should account for a lot, but it can't and won't cover everything.

If this was to continue for two years -- which I doubt BTW -- you might see considerable investment in fast passenger ships. I imagine rail companies are making a killing right now, but trains still do make noise and many consider the lines ugly.

[GomJabbar]

TimesOnline: Watching Iceland volcano’s big sister

The erupting Eyjafjallajökull volcano may be causing its fair share of havoc but scientists say we may have seen nothing yet.

All eyes in the volcanology community are focused on Eyjafjallajökull’s far larger sister, called Katla, which could cause disruption on a far larger scale. Katla is about eight miles to the west under the Myrdalsjökull ice cap. An eruption could cause widespread flooding and disrupt air traffic between Europe and North America.

While Katla is not part of the same underground network of magma channels, it is close enough to be affected by power shifts in Eyjafjallajökull’s system.

There is also a chance that a horizontal sheet of magma under Eyjafjallajökull could shoot out and enter a magma chamber beneath Katla. Hitting the roots of its neighbour would almost certainly trigger an eruption.

The three eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull on record have each been associated with a subsequent eruption of Katla. There have been no signs of turbulence beneath Katla but, having last erupted in 1918, a new blast is overdue. Katla has erupted every 40-80 years.

“So far there have been no signs of the reawakening of the Katla volcano, but a lot of things can still happen, so we are monitoring it quite closely,” Páll Einarsson, a geophysicist at the University of Iceland, said.

[qviri]

Oh yes, Katla has a temper.

At the peak of [Katla's] 1755 eruption the flood discharge has been estimated at 200,000–400,000 m³/s; for comparison, the combined average discharge of the Amazon, Mississippi, Nile, and Yangtze rivers is about 266,000 m³/s.

[A31]

Can you imagine being on holiday in the UK just now, near the end of your holiday and the end of your money? What if it took weeks before you could get home and back to your job? Where would you stay and what would you do for food in the meantime? Scary!

My thoughts as well, GomJabber. But you could be stuck anywhere, like, I could be stuck in the USA at the moment because there are no flights in or out to the UK at the moment, and that means I wouldn't be able to get to back to my home, Norwich... It's not just the UK though, other European countries, such as Sweden and Norway are also affected by this Volcanic Ash from Iceland.

[killer]

I was just talking to my wife earlier today...
Can you imagine being on holiday in the UK just now, near the end of your holiday and the end of your money? What if it took weeks before you could get home and back to your job? Where would you stay and what would you do for food in the meantime? Scary!

DKB, One of the benefits of a forum like this is that one could always PM someone in the area where you are stuck and ask if you could kip there for a while. I wouldn't mind if someone contacted me and asked for help.

[7thsky]

This wouldn't be affecting Asia-European travel in a large scale right? As it is , i know most flights are on hold; but it'll get back to normal soon enough, right? ha, m scheduled for madrid next month..

[RealBlackStuff]

Spain is not yet involved.

For an overview of the current areas that are hit with this "ash-rain" see the weather charts of the UK Met Office.
(these are updated regularly):
http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/aviation/va ... k_vag.html

[kiwipad]

The fact that so many of these stranded passengers are whingeing about not being able to get wherever they were supposed to be going suggests air travel isn't important.

If it was that important they would have a contingency plan

[killer]

@kiwipad: That's a very perceptive view. Maybe people have been lulled into a false sense of security as they think the worst that can happen is a day's delay if they miss a flight. For general safety reasons all flights have been cancelled into northern European locations for days due to the slow moving, high altitude, ash. It could last for hours, days, or weeks.

Monday in England is a big return to school and work after the Easter holidays. Many people are stuck in faraway places and won't get back in time. As you suggest, it is their fault for having no contingency arrangement. Maybe they should have taken their holiday here in the UK ... the weather has been wonderful.

[kiwipad]

I was playing "devil's advocate" a bit there ! But it is a recurring theme whenever any transport system is disrupted, but it seems more so with air travel. Almost every news report I've seen has shown some "...my holiday is ruined, I'm furious..." or "...I'm stuck here with nowhere to sleep and I've no money left..." kind of statement. Or maybe those soundbites just make a "good story."

Even more amusing are those travellers pointing at clear blue skies and demanding to know why they (not aircraft in general but they personally you'll notice) can't make their trip. How hard is it to understand a) volcanic ash does bad things to turbines b) no engines and planes fall out of skies c) traffic control is not going to close airspace without a very good reason, oh and d) just because the air above your head is clear, in order to get somewhere else you may have to fly through affected airspace, and while I'm exercising my alphabet knowledge, e) once the ash cloud disperses, there are going to be lots of aircraft and crew in the wrong places and a fair backlog of passengers to move.

We have taken air travel especially for granted as cheap and reliable, almost a commodity of right. Maybe this episode will cause people to reconsider the real value of such travel as well as a need for some self-responsibility? (Yeah right, and pigs might fly...hmm, is porcine aviation affected by this?)

Actually we flew into Heathrow early January, the day after the airport was closed because of snow. My biggest worry was not that we might not be able to land in London (diversion to ??? = great adventure opportunity !) but that we would get on the ground at LHR only to be stuck there because ground transport wasn't running. Having to spend any time at that airport would be nightmare-inducing for anyone

[kiwipad]

One of the benefits of a forum like this is that one could always PM someone in the area where you are stuck and ask if you could kip there for a while. I wouldn't mind if someone contacted me and asked for help.

AucklandTourism actually put out a call for locals to offer accomodation assistance to stranded travellers over the weekend, and with typical NZ generosity only half have needed to be taken up...and although we're down the other end of the N Island I did sign up just in case folk are stuck down here waiting on flights - see I'm not totally heartless

Meanwhile Air NZ is warning of 2 week delays in clearing its London-bound passenger backlog so if anyone was thinking that once flights resume all is going to be back to normal immediately...

[GomJabbar]

AP: Volcano flight chaos leaves many passengers broke

"We're at the end of the holiday so we've spent all our money," a weary-eyed Andrew said, as he sat with his family next to the Qantas customer service counter at Sydney Airport. "Because that's what you do on holiday."

In Japan, Francois Broche was down to his last 3,000 yen ($30). The 33-year-old literature and philosophy professor from Nimes, France, said he would have to call his bank at home to see if he can get his money transferred — but doesn't know how.

"I stayed in my hotel last night, but that was all my money," he said at the Narita International Airport, near Tokyo. "I think I'm going to stay here and sleep at the airport. Help me God."

Nicolas Ribard, 29, from Avignon, France, was among about a dozen stranded tourists squatting on sleeping bags that Narita airport officials had lent them. He and three other friends had about 3,000 yen between them, and were surviving on airport-issued crackers, bottled water and coupons for one free shower a day.

Their earliest possible flight would be Taiwan's EVA Airways on May 12 — but only if they are willing to pay an extra 150 euros ($200). Otherwise, they have to wait until June, Ribard said.

Airport officials came by Monday and offered a tour of the airport to kill time.

"This is not what we need," Ribard said. "We want a bowl of rice."

"Yesterday, we had a hotel room at 250 euros. At midday, it was 460 euros, and in the evening, the price was 800 euros for a room — we can't pay that," he said Monday as he waited at KLM Royal Dutch Airlines' counter in Hong Kong's airport.

[RealBlackStuff]

The ash clouds have reached Nova Scotia! http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/aviation/va ... k_vag.html

[GomJabbar]

UK sends in navy to help ash cloud crisis

London, England (CNN) -- The UK is sending Royal Navy vessels to bring home travelers stranded by the ash cloud disruption, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Monday.

[kiwipad]

I know this isn't exactly the place for this ongoing discussion but it does seem one of the few places where rationality and sanity, rather than hysteria and self-interest, prevail. Now why would I have expected any different ?

So a couple of interesting and somewhat contradictory updates:

On the one hand we have IATA calling the situation an embarassment and a mess and demanding government action (er..what? deploy big vacuum cleaners maybe - anyone got any?) - not that IATA has a financial interest or anything...

... meanwhile the Finnish Air Force releases pictures of one of its jet trainers' engines after it had flown in the ash cloud.

Now maybe I'm an overly cautious sort of person but seeing those pics would persuade me the flight restrictions are probably a good thing !

[RealBlackStuff]

Some great pictures of the 'sinner' volcano:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/yahooedito ... 4502820386

[GomJabbar]

Thanks for posting the pictures, RBS. Really enjoyed looking at them.

[killer]

Interesting updates this evening; one report says that ash is being chucked out at an alarming rate, another says that lava is now coming out and ash output has reduced.

Meanwhile some reports state that some UK airports are due to reopen tomorrow (20th April), while others say the earliest could be Thursday (22nd).

It is all rather confusing.

Meanwhile, here at ground level, we have blue skies, sunshine, and fabulous spring weather.

[kiwipad]

OK, so the numbers might be open to question, but food for thought here:

http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/2 ... =Bloglines

IG

[Marin85]

I was checking my email, when I saw these lightnings in Eyjafjallajokull. Are these for real? They call it "dirty thunderstorm": supposedly volcano eruptions produce large amount of electric charge.

[GomJabbar]

If it's on MSNBC, I'm pretty sure it's real. Nice images!

[killer]

London, England (CNN) -- The UK is sending Royal Navy vessels to bring home travelers stranded by the ash cloud disruption, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Monday.

HMS Albion is leaving Santander in the north of Spain today. On board will be troops returning to the UK and 300 civilians who cannot get back by air.

Brittany Ferries operates a scheduled service between Santander and the south of England, and P&O Ferries currently runs a scheduled service from Bilbao to Portsmouth, although this is due to end in September. Both companies have been bringing thousands of people back from Spain. On arrival at the ports there is chaos clearing the immigration checks. In Portsmouth at the weekend there was a staff of only five immigration officers and enormous queues of travellers. When I was a lad there was an immigration officer on each ship and checks were made during the crossing. When the ferry arrived in port everyone then walked, or drove, off and handed in the pass issued by the immigration officer. No queues in those days.

[killer]

There are some lovely images here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8631517.stm

Turn up the volume so that you hear the soundtrack.

[kiwipad]

I was checking my email, when I saw these lightnings in Eyjafjallajokull. Are these for real? They call it "dirty thunderstorm": supposedly volcano eruptions produce large amount of electric charge.

Yep, common feature of volcanic eruption - essentially the same cause as "regular" t-storms, massive convection currents causing particles to become charged, leading to static discharge (earthing) which you "see" as lightning and "hear" as thunder. The volcanic ones are much more impressive though !! But because they happen in the middle of an ash plume they are not always easy to see and the explosive eruptions can mask the sound.

IG

[killer]

@kiwipad: You have several active volcanoes on North Island. Are they far from you?I've only ever seen one active volcano, Mount Etna in Sicily. Its eruptions were a spectacular sight from the safety of Taormina.

[kiwipad]

@kiwipad: You have several active volcanoes on North Island. Are they far from you?I've only ever seen one active volcano, Mount Etna in Sicily. Its eruptions were a spectacular sight from the safety of Taormina.

Far enough thanks We just sit on a major earthquake fault line down here ...

The N Island volcanoes are on the central plateau about 300-350km road trip.

They're "active" in a volcanic sense, which means they are not constantly erupting. Last big activity was Ruapehu in 1995 (? I think). There were some very spectacular pics captured by a local photgrapher, see if I can find some.

Meanwhile this is the mountain looking benign last month (apologies, taken from train so lousy quality pic).

IG

<edit> OK, Ruapehu last major activity 1996 - I was close ! This is the well-known pic I was thinking of but wanted to reference the photographer's own site (not just some random Google result !! ). Trivia: Ruapehu "starred" in the Lord of the Rings films as Mt Doom