Icelandic Volcanic Eruption - Significant Disruption to UK Flights

Cosimo · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:13

ShakenNstirred said:
anyone know if its all planes or just passenger flights?

i work for DHL on the ramp at Ema airport loading there cargo planes
don't know yet if our planes are also grounded

All UK air traffic unless there is an emergency.

craig3000 · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:13

I just saw a helo brave lil devil

Just watching CH4 news they mentioned some low level ash (didn't hear location) people reporting bad taste in their mouths must be up far north I'd expect

craig3000 · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:14

simulatorman said:
All air traffic unless there is an emergency.

Small planes, private etc are allowed to their just strongly advised not to :confused:

tbh though people that can afford private planes probably don't give a monkeys

squerble · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:15

mark66 said:
Just watched a small Cessna type plane fly over my place of work in Aylesbury. I thought UK airspace was shut expect for Search & Rescue flights?

I believe some VFR flights are still being granted. Bet it would be nice to flit around in a Cessna with no big aircraft in the way!

XeNoN89 · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:18

The small aircraft that just made a quick dash is bernie ecclestone's jet!

Trick · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:23

NATS will not provide IFR clearances to aircraft; since the majority of UK airspace is Controlled Airspace (and hence those flights are IFR) NATS will not control any flights. NATS have even said they will not provide Special VFR for vfr flights inside Control Zones and Areas, so that pretty much precludes most ac taking off from any of the major aerodromes.

The Military will not provide IFR clearance to any civil flights, however they will provide ATSOCAS (Air Traffic Services Outside Controlled Airspace) to civil aircraft which can remain VMC. Military atc will privde a full range of services to military ac however it appears that most planned military flying has been binned.

That's why there's very little flying today but some aircraft are still in the sky!

Scuzi · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:27

craig3000 said:
Small planes, private etc are allowed to their just strongly advised not to tbh though people that can afford private planes probably don't give a monkeys

Technically the airspace isn't shut. The Central Flow Management Unit in Brussels which controls the flow of air traffic has applied a zero flow rate to all UK airspace meaning that aircraft cannot fly within controlled airspace. Technically they can fly outside controlled airspace hence why you see all the general aviation traffic flying around but as it's "no-man's land" out there, the commercial carries won't fly outside the airways system as a matter of course.

Air traffic controllers are still at their post even though they aren't doing anything because they have to be as the airspace is technically open.

I sincerely hope this doesn't drag on for too long. I remember during training being told that for every 48 hours that UK airspace is closed, X amount of airlines will go bust. I believe efforts are in place to monitor the concentration of volcanic ash in our atmosphere using a specially equipped aircraft and depending on the results of that it could go either way I guess.

BlizzardX · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:30

I'm really hoping that this clears quickly and we have no further trouble with Katla or others as I'm due to emmigrate to the other side of the world and my flight takes off from Heathrow in two weeks!

Westyfield2 · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:34

Trick said:
NATS will not provide IFR clearances to aircraft; since the majority of UK airspace is Controlled Airspace (and hence those flights are IFR) NATS will not control any flights. NATS have even said they will not provide Special VFR for vfr flights inside Control Zones and Areas, so that pretty much precludes most ac taking off from any of the major aerodromes.

The Military will not provide IFR clearance to any civil flights, however they will provide ATSOCAS (Air Traffic Services Outside Controlled Airspace) to civil aircraft which can remain VMC. Military atc will privde a full range of services to military ac however it appears that most planned military flying has been binned.

That's why there's very little flying today but some aircraft are still in the sky!

There are no planes around so I'd just fly where-ever the **** I wanted!

http://matthew-taylor.fotopic.net/p64268640.html http://www.airframes.org/reg/gbuec

Bear · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:34

Noooooooooo !!! Im due to fly out to Thailand tomorrow night. Damn you volcano, damn you !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

JRY · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:41

Was supposed to fly to Amsterdam this morning and flight got cancelled!!! Doh!
rebooked for tomorrow morning but think its quite unlikely.. will just have to wait and see

antijoke · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:43

Where were you flying from?

I'm due to fly to Poland tomorrow from Luton.

Lopéz · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:55

Berserker said:
Dread to think what this will do to the air freight business. Expect a rush on fresh fruit and veg imminently. :/

Bad Times, our air network is doing pretty much nothing tonight.

ShakenNstirred, there won't be anything going out or coming in tonight. Same for us.

RobH · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:56

BBC News Website said:
1840 Bev Ewen-Smith in Portimao, Portugal says:

It is pretty clear from the Modis satellite image that there is no dust over most of UK. Another example where fear of litigation will eventually bring everything to its knees. Thanks lawyers!

I'm sure if a family member was on a plane that crashed because of the ash cloud they would be saying the complete opposite.

Raymond Lin · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:58

That was lucky, i landed at 9pm last night at Heathrow from Hong Kong, I think i would've been stranded in HK if i caught the next flight or had to land at Paris if we were already in the air...

Marky · 15 Apr 2010 at 19:59

I hope it's laughing gas... I need a good "lol"

Kristoph · 15 Apr 2010 at 20:00

anticonscience said:
Where were you flying from?

I'm due to fly to Poland tomorrow from Luton.

BBC

1948 The airspace over northern Poland is also closed, AFP reports.

RobH · 15 Apr 2010 at 20:11

There is an Aircrash Investigation episode about the British Airways Flight 9 incident that happened in 1982 that all of these news reports are referencing. It's interesting to watch, I saw it on the National Geographic channel a few years ago but they don't seem to repeat the older episodes that often and they never released them on DVD. I managed to find the episode on YouTube though:

Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

J1234 · 15 Apr 2010 at 20:21

RobH said:
There is an Aircrash Investigation episode about the British Airways Flight 9 incident that happened in 1982 that all of these news reports are referencing. It's interesting to watch, I saw it on the National Geographic channel a few years ago but they don't seem to repeat the older episodes that often and they never released them on DVD. I managed to find the episode on YouTube though:

That episode is actually on National Geographic tonight. Coincidence?

JRY · 15 Apr 2010 at 20:23

anticonscience said:
Where were you flying from?

I'm due to fly to Poland tomorrow from Luton.

from Liverpool John Lennon airport