What volcanic ash?

[longers]

You want to take a chance on loosing ALL engines at once?

I'd take a gamble on losing half of them but no more.

 

[longers]

Thats cheered me up no end.Thanks!

Party?

 

[Globalti]

It's looking serious - we might not be able to get any green beans flown in from Kenya.

 

[Norm]

And who's going to want to be on a flight until it's really clear? You want to take a chance on lossing ALL engines at once?

I'm wondering about this one, as I don't think that it has ever caused a plane crash, they just lose power until they drop out of the cloud.

I think someone's risk assessment and strategy might be amended if the eruption does go on for much longer.

 

[psmiffy]

I'm wondering about this one, as I don't think that it has ever caused a plane crash, they just lose power until they drop out of the cloud.

I think someone's risk assessment and strategy might be amended if the eruption does go on for much longer.

I think in the reported cases they were lucky

 

[gavintc]

Don't worry the wind will change in a week or so and there will be a mad scramble to get everything airborne - if it did continue to erupt in this manner it would be interesting to see how our world would change

As said before, it just shows how vulnerable our systems actually are. A bit of ash has created significant disruption across the world. If this was to gone on for say a year, you can only imagine the economic loss as a result. As it is, I can foresee some businesses going bankrupt; airlines, florists, etc. There will be some interesting fallout from this little problem.

My son has his flight re-booked for Fri night. Hopefully, things will be back to normal by then.

 

[gavintc]

It's easy to say, sat here unaffected, but it's... not nice, but... well, interesting to see how easily we are knocked off our perches by Mother Nature. I mean the people of Bangladesh, or Haiti will have known already, but here we are, utterly unable to DO anything about it.

And this isn't even a volcano that's killed anyone, as far as I know.

I wonder what'll happen when Vesuvius goes again. Which is way overdue. An Italian friend told me that none of the scientists who study Vesuvius will live in Naples....

We climbed Vesuvius on Wed, it is an interesting mountain - way overdue a pop. Thankfully, we live outside the danger zone. But, 8 million people reportedly live inside the area. On my daily commute, I go past a crater pushing out sulphur fumes - it is pretty stinky.

Colleagues talk about the risk. It seems that most locals are quite fatalist about the whole thing. Apparently, Neapolitans shrug when asked.

 

[Norm]

I think in the reported cases they were lucky

Lucky would be one incident. I understand that it has happened three times, and the engines re-started every time, which would suggest something other than luck, IMO.

I've also struggled to find any detailed information on the distances from the volcano. Best I can see on the most famous of them, the Speedbird 9 flight, is that it not only appeared to be about 100 miles from the volcano but the ash cloud it was flying through was so thick that it got into the plane, and the passengers and flight crew thought it was smoke. They could smell the sulphur.

That is very different from what we are seeing around Europe at the moment.

I've just seen that the French environment minister has said that a study into the effects of dust on aircraft engines will be carried out. Whose turn is to it say that this is H&S gawn maaad.

 

[slowmotion]

I'm not sure I would wish to be on a jet that lost power in all engines, even if they re-started at a lower altitude. Have you heard of The Gimli Glider? A great moment in aviation history...it may bring a smile to your faces.

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Gimli Glider...

http://www.wadenelson.com/gimli.html

 

[Globalti]

As Norm writes, the BA flight blundered into a cloud that was so thick that the dust got inside the cabin. In the present case I think there's concern about the damage ingesting the dust could do to an aircraft engine at full thrust - imagine if an airline had to repair or replace every single engine on their entire fleet? It would bankrupt them.

BA will go bust soon as their pension scheme is crippling them. I foresee the collapse of BA in the next year or two and the emergence of a new airline called British or something similar.

Here's the latest map of the cloud: http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/aviation/vaac/data/VAG_1271508253.png

....yet according to comments on Airliners.net aircraft are still flying all over Russia.

 

[Spinney]

I'm not sure I would wish to be on a jet that lost power in all engines, even if they re-started at a lower altitude. Have you heard of The Gimli Glider? A great moment in aviation history...it may bring a smile to your faces.

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Gimli Glider...

http://www.wadenelson.com/gimli.html

to the pilots!

 

[fossyant]

There is evidence in the geological records of volcanoes erupting for decades

There is another cyclist at the hotel......we're thinking about pinching a pedalo to get home........

 

[summerdays]

Wow that's an amazing story that I hadn't heard before.

Just read this piece on BBC website that made me smile:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_8626000/8626927.stm
Imagine how they would enter the folklore.

Mr Summerdays team members are starting to make their way back ... at least 6 out of a team of 12 are stuck abroad - mostly Europe. He's been getting text's over the weekend as they make their alternative travel plans. The one that's in China is trying to make it back to Italy.

 

[wafflycat]

It's looking serious - we might not be able to get any green beans flown in from Kenya.

Grow your own!

 

[lifeson]

Finally become a victim
Was supposed to fly out to Frankfurt this afteRnoon, but now the flight has been officially cancelled. Could have gone on the club ride after all - bugger!