V-Flyer

Nightmare! complete over-reaction!! !
Our preparations to travel to Orlando with Virgin last year were a complete nightmare looking back the whole thing was a massive over reaction to a very small threat, in the end we got away on the proper date..

does anyone know if the "laws" have been changed now regarding flying if there is a volcanic eruption?

! !

Bono81 wrote:does anyone know if the "laws" have been changed now regarding flying if there is a volcanic eruption?

not the 'law' as such but there was a recognition that the engine manufactureres were a tad tardy in updating their advice re engines and the size of the ash particles that they could handle safely

I recall that the regulators and ATC etc were saying it was ok to fly in the cloud but the engine makers were not willing to give the goahead for airlines to fly.


As to 'massive over reaction to a very small threat' I don't agree with you. Decisions weere made on the best evidence available and it is easy with hindsight to say 'X' was right but 'Y' was wrong when at the time the indications were it was unsafe to fly.

As to 'massive over reaction to a very small threat' I don't agree with you. Decisions weere made on the best evidence available and it is easy with hindsight to say 'X' was right but 'Y' was wrong when at the time the indications were it was unsafe to fly.

Agreed. Can you imagine what would have happened if something had happened if an airline had been allowed to fly?! Personally, I would say that anything that keeps people safe if a good thing.

tontybear wrote:As to 'massive over reaction to a very small threat' I don't agree with you. Decisions weere made on the best evidence available and it is easy with hindsight to say 'X' was right but 'Y' was wrong when at the time the indications were it was unsafe to fly.

Disagree, as would I think most professional in aviation. It was a massive over reaction. There may have been two or three days when it was sensible to close airspace over the SE, not the period that was, and many other routing options could have been taken. I still cheer Willie Walsh for calling the bluff of the H&S inspired regulators. Further, in all the engine inspections that followed the reopening of airspace, I heard of not one single engine that required specific repairs.

I cant imagine it no, cos it was never gonna happen, It was an over reaction, The whole thing was based on an outdated system that in effect guessed where they thought the cloud may or may not be, there wasn't any physical evidence that proved the cloud was there, it was all predictions by people sat in an office somewhere. They completely ignored physical evidence and data from the test flights conducted throughout the week, it wasn't until the airlines started to put heavy pressure on that someone actually grew a pair and used a bit of good old fashioned common sense and lifted the ban!

Just to put the risk into perspective as far as I know there have been 2 incidents involving ash clouds affecting planes. These being the BA Jakarta flight and the KLM Alaska flight. In both incidents the crews pretty much flew directly through the erupting plume and it obviously had a direct affect on the engines. So yeah it's a good idea to avoid the immediate area near an erupting volcano not put a blanket ban hundreds of miles away

I have views in both camps on this(where is the sitting on the fence smiley when you need it) so y) n(

I think a very cautious approach was essential, initially. However I do think that led to an over-reaction.

I was due off on holiday so there is invariably a selfish element to this. However I found it particularly irritating standing in the garden watching planes overflying UK space when here none were taking off. v(

Anyway it all worked out in the end, planes started flying and we got away on time. ii) However I shall long remember watching the Radar Virtuel site and all those BA planes approaching the UK on the 20th April (we flew on 22nd) and the excitement of the forum on here. And Willie Walsh played a blinder too. y)

HWVlover wrote:However I shall long remember watching the Radar Virtuel site and all those BA planes approaching the UK on the 20th April (we flew on 22nd) and the excitement of the forum on here.

I remember watching Radar Virtuel that night too and watching all those BA planes circling outside the UK and then they all started lining up and landing!

We spent an extra 5 days in Shanghai as a result of the volcano. Extended our holiday to China to not far off 4 weeks!

I remember the stress of it. We got away on 3rd May as planned but it was all really panicky in the run up and I wouldn't want that stress again.

Right or wrong I don't know but customer safety has to be the most important thing. I remember watching the radar as well.

This study indicates that the shutdown was justified, just the length is debatable

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-13161056