Iceland volcano: Latest travel advice
As the boss of Ryanair, Michael O'Leary is no stranger to controversy and today, as more than 250 flights were cancelled as a result of the ash cloud from Iceland volcano Grimsvotn, he dismissed the plume as 'non-existent'.
The towering plume of Icelandic ash, smoke and steam hit Scotland and Ireland last night, bringing disruption to airlines, leading to the cancellation of 252 flights.
But this morning Ryanair carried out a test flight 41,000ft over Scotland and branded the so-called 'red-zone- of ash cloud 'non existent and mythical and misguided invention by the UK Met Office and the Civil Aviation Authority.'
This afternoon the Met Office said the plume was likely to head in a south westerly direction between 6pm and midnight and would probably avoid the London area.
On the ground: A car drives towards the erupting Grimsvotn volcano which has sent thousands of tonnes of volcanic ash into the sky
Stranded: Passengers sleep on the floor at Edinburgh Airport after their flights were cancelled late last night
Haves and have nots: President Obama flew early so he could avoid being stuck in Ireland longer than he wanted, but these stranded passengers at Edinburgh Airport didn't have that luxury
Unreliable: Ryanair chief Michael O'Leary said his test flight demonstrated the UK Met Office's 'red zone' forecasts were 'totally unreliable and unsupported by any evidence'
British Airways and a host of other airlines last night cancelled all flights between London and Scotland until 2pm today, and the Civil Aviation Authority has said the ash cloudis moving unpredictably and changing by the hour.
However, while aviation chiefs deemed Scottish airspace to have a 'high ash concentration', Ryanair said it had written confirmation from both its airframe and engine manufacturers that it is safe to operate in the area.
'This morning's verification flight has demonstrated that the UK Met Office's 'red zone' forecasts are totally unreliable and unsupported by any evidence of volcanic ash concentrations whatsoever,' a Ryanair spokesman said.
European air traffic agency Eurocontrol said 252 flights had already been cancelled in Europe.
As well as Heathrow, air traffic control company Nats said ash is expected to affect other UK airports, including Londonderry, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Prestwick, Newcastle, Carlisle, Durham Tees Valley and Cumbernauld.
This lunchtime Heathrow airport said just some flights to Iceland, Norway and Scotland were affected at the moment and there was no indication of any further disruption.
The situa! tion is also being closely monitored by Barcelona football club whose players are due to fly to London for Saturday's Champions League final against Manchester United at Wembley.
Bewildered: Passengers stand beneath departure boards at Edinburgh Airport as Ryanair said it would protest against "unnecessary" restrictions
Waiting and more waiting: Passengers at Edinburgh Airport wait to board buses to other airports after their flights were cancelled
Where travellers stand: Your rights if your flight is cancelled because of the ash cloud
Unfortunately for many, the memory of abandoning long-planned holidays in favour of a week at home is all too fresh. Although we won't know how badly UK airspace will be affected by the latest Icelandic ash cloud until later in the week, here's where you stand if your flight is affected.
We're due to go away for half-term. What if my flight is cancelled or delayed?
If your flight is cancelled airlines should offer you either a full refund of your unused ticket or an alternative flight. EU-based airlines are required to offer you accommodation and meals if you are delayed in getting home to the UK.
Under EU rules, airlines within the EU/EEA or Swiss region must compensate passengers up to 600 if their flight is cancelled or heavily delayed, unless the situation has been caused by 'extraordinary circumstances which could not have been avoided even if all reasonab! le measu res had been taken.'
However, in the case of the volcanic ash delays, the airlines may claim 'extraordinary circumstances' and should be able to avoid paying compensation.
However, this does not remove their duty of care that is also detailed in the regulations. The rules state that they must provide passengers with accommodation, meals and refreshments and transport between the airport and accommodation. Airlines are breaking the rules by shirking this obligation.
Am I covered by travel insurance?
If your flight is cancelled and you do not travel, insurers should refund your premium if you took out single trip travel insurance. If you arrange an alternative flight at a later date, your travel insurer should be able to change your policy to cover this. However, insurance policies vary significantly and you should call your insurer for a clear answer.
I'm already abroad. If the ash cloud reaches Britain and my return flight is affected, what are my rights?
The former Air Transport Users Council, now part of the Civil Aviation Authority, says: 'Regulation (EC) 261/2004 requires airlines to offer you meals, refreshments and hotel accommodation as appropriate whilst you wait for a rearranged flight. They should also cover any transport costs between the hotel and the airport. There are no time or monetary limits on the provision of this assistance.
'If your airline has not provided assistance, and you have had to arrange it yourself, our advice is to keep your expenditure to a minimum, make sure you get receipts and claim reimbursement from your airline when you get home.'
Bear in mind, you are unlikely to get a refund/compensation if you abandon your flight or take any help offered and try to navigate your own way home.
How do I reclaim if I'm delayed?
In order to reclaim ash flight and accommodation costs off your airline you will need to write to them, referencing the regulations and their responsibi! lities a nd including as many receipts as possible.
You should tell them that under Regulation (EC) 261/2004 Article 5 you are entitled to be reimbursed or re-routed under Article 8 and also offered assistance, including accommodation, meals and transport under Article 9.
You should also state that under Article 5, airlines are able to not pay compensation in accordance with article 7 in the case of 'extraordinary circumstances', but crucially that this extraordinary circumstances clause does not apply to the entitlement to assistance under Article 9.
Your expenses should be reasonable you can't treat yourself and expect to get compensated.
British Airways is not operating any flights between London and Scotland before 2pm.
Scots regional airline Loganair scrapped 38 flights and Irish carrier Aer Lingus said it had cancelled 12 flights to and from Glasgow, Aberdeen and Edinburgh.
British Airways announced that it would not operate any flights between London and Scotland before 2pm.
EasyJet also cancelled its flights from Glasgow until lunchtime.
At Glasgow today, most passengers whose flights had already been cancelled did not make their way to the airport.
- Click here to see live video of volcano eruption viewed from space
Passengers with holiday companies Thomson and Thomas Cook were waiting for buses to take them to Manchester to pick up later flights.
The airport's cafes were packed and people sat on their suitcases or tried to catch up on sleep as they waited for news.
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Guy McKinven, from the Clyde Valley area, was travelling with easyJet to Stansted to spend a week with his grandmother.
He said: 'You see people shouting and getting upset, but there's nothing you can do.
'It is frustrating, but that's just the situation. EasyJet have been helpful and have told me I can have a refund for my flight.
Time for a nap: British Airways is not operating any flights between London and Scotland before 2pm so passengers caught up on some sleep
Bored: Passengers try to entertain themselves at Edinburgh Airport this morning as they wait for flights to re-start
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Despite the cancellations, experts are predicting the aviation industry will not be as badly affected even though the eruption is 10 times the scale of the one last year.
ProfGillian Foulger, of Durham University, who set up a research station onGrimsvotn in 1996, said: 'Thankfully it is subsiding. When it began on Saturday, it started with a bang, a huge, officially cataclysmic eruption.
'Because it started so huge, it is subsiding very quickly. I think we are looking at a gradually reducing eruptive rate.
'I think the disruption is going to be much less than last year.
'Theeruption is 10 times as big as the one last year but most of the ash isblowing north and the aviation industry has got its act together and knows exactly how much ash is safe to fly through so the very minimum number of flights will be cancelled.'
TransportSecretary Philip Hammond some disruption was inevitable but said a blanket ban on flights like last year would not be imposed.
Hesaid: 'We are in a much better place this year because we have worked with airlines and regulators to build a regime that puts safety first, but with far more flexibility. We will not be imposing a blanket ban like the last government.
'Instead it is up to airlines to decide whether it is safe to fly in discussions with the CAA.'
DavidRothery, of the Open University volcano dynamics group, said: 'Reports this morning suggest that the Grimsvotn ash column has subsided to around 5km. That's a good sign, and the eruption will most likely continue to decrease in intensity, producing a lower plume with less ash.
'However it could reinvigorate and remain troublesome for several days, and anyway the existing ash cloud has yet to disperse.'
AMet Office spokeswoman said this morning: 'The weather is uncertain over the nextfew days. We have a low pressure system moving in tomorrow and there could be some westerly winds.
'Ho wever, very small changes in weather patterns can make very large changes in how the ash will move.'
The airlines said customers on any cancelled flights will be able to claim a full refund or rebook on to alternative flights and that all other flights will operate as scheduled.
A BA spokesman said: We would urge customers not to travel to the airport if their flight has been cancelled.
Closer to the source: A plane flies past smoke plume from the eruption of the Grimsvotn volcano in Southeast Iceland but flights in Britain are being cancelled
Pink lightening: The stormy conditions around the Grimsvotn volcano look dramatic but authorities insist that it poses a lesser threat than the last ash cloud
WHAT'S BEEN CANCELLED?
- All flights from Heathrow and London City airports to and from Scotland have been cancelled.
- Easy Jet, Aer Lingus, Flybe, KLM, Logan Air and Eastern Airways have all cancelled flights to and from Scotland.
- Ryanair has been ordered by the Irish Aviation Authority to cancel flights to and from Glasgow, Prestwick, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.
- Dutch airline
- Flybe has cancelled 11 flights to Edinburgh and Inverness.
- BMI is still operating services to Edinburgh and Glasgow but services to Aberdeen are affected.
- Glasgow-based carrier Loganair - which operates most of its services within Scotland - said it had scrapped 36 flights due to depart between 6am and 1pm. This excluded its inter-isles flights in Orkney. Some of its flights to Birmingham and Belfast were also cancelled.
- Aer Lingus said it had cancelled 12 flights to and from Glasgow, Dublin, Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Shannon and Cork.
Easy Jet, Aer Lingus, Flybe, KLM, Logan Air and Eastern Airways have all cancelled flights to and from Scotland.
Ryanair has been ordered by the Irish Aviation Authority to cancel flights to and from Glasgow, Prestwick, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.
Easy Jet said today it had cancelled flights to and from Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness and Aberdeen between 5am and 1pm today.
Richard Lloyd, executive director of Which? magazine, said: 'Travellers should still be prepared for delays and cancellations, but airlines and the CAA do not expect the volcanic ash to cause as much disruption as last year.
'If you do have a flight booked over the next few days, contact your airline before you go to the airport, and make sure they have your up-to-date contact details.'
He went on: 'If your flight is cancelled or delayed for over five hours, you should be offered a choice of a full refund or transfer to an alternative flight. However, the airlines don't have to compensate passengers for loss of any additional elements to holidays, ! such as accommodation and car hire.
'It may be possible to claim for these losses on travel insurance, but passengers will need to check their individual policies, many of which may now have specific exclusions built in.'
The IAA said that, based on the latest information from the Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC) in London, there would be no shutdown of Irish airspace.
But as a string of carriers announcedcancellations, Mr Hammond said Britons 'have got to learn' to live with chaos caused by volcanic activity in Iceland.
'Myunderstanding is that we have gone through an unusually quiet period for volcanic eruptions in Iceland over the last 20-odd years and we are moving into a period when there is likely to be significantly more volcanic activity,' he told the BBC.
'So this is clearly something we have got to learn to plan around. We have got to learn to live with it.'
Sincelast year's eruption, the authorities have gained a 'much better understanding' of the risk from ash clouds and are able to assess the thickness of different patches as well as the possibility of flying overor below a cloud, he said.
'Most importantly, the basic situation now is that the threshold for most aircraft is 20 times where it was last year.
'We have got from 200 microgrammes per cubic metre to 4,000 microgrammes per cubic metre as the threshold up to which most aircraft can fly.
'What we can't promise is that there won't be disruption when there is a major natural event like this.'
However, he insisted the airlines were 'making the decisions'.
'They have looked at the projections for tomorrow and said `This is not something we can fly in'.
'If they wanted to make a safety case to fly in the conditions that are modelled for to! morrow, they would have to put forward a safety case to the CAA that would then consider it.'
Mr Hammond also said this morning that there were indications that the eruption could be subsiding.
'There is some early indication that the scale and power of the eruption might be subsiding a little bit.
'Perhapsit's a little bit too early to be absolutely sure about that, but clearly that's the most important thing - if the ash stops belching out of the volcano then, after a few days, the problem will have cleared, sothat's one of the factors.
'Theother is the wind speed and direction. At the moment the weather patterns are very volatile which is what is making it quite difficult, unlike last year, to predict where the ash will go.
'The public can be absolutely confident the regulators that airlines are only able to operate when it is safe to do so.'
Ryanair said it could not see any ash cloud and its plane had no ash on its wings or in its engines following a test flight
U.S. President Barack Obama flew fromIreland to London last night a day early to ensure the cloud does not delay his state visit.
The warnings come a year after debrisfrom the Eyjafjallajkull volcano spread across Europe, creating the biggest no-fly zone since the Second World War. But the Civil Aviation Authority has stressed that, unlike last years six-day ban, a complete shut-down of British airspace will not happen this time.
This is because tests following the ex! perience of last April have shown that many flights can still take place when the ash is in low or medium density.
There will be a blanket ban on all flights only when the cloud is at its highest concentration of ash. Andrew Haines, chief executive of the CAA, said: Our number one priority is to ensure the safety of people both onboard aircraft and on the ground.
THE NEW RULES ON AIRSPACE CLOSURES DUE TO ASH
New procedures will govern the closure of UK airspace this time.
A CAA spokesman explained that interested parties had agreed on a system whereby ash levels are graded as low, medium or high.
'Airspacewill not be closed and we will notify airlines when the Met Office predicts there are medium or high levels of ash present,' the spokesman said.
'If an airline has done a risk assessment as to how it will fly safely in medium or high ash levels and as liaised with aircraft manufacturers and engine makers, then they will be able to fly if the CAA considers it acceptable.'
The new arrangements that have been put in place since last years ash cloud mean the aviation sector is better prepared and will help to reduce any disruption in the event thatvolcanic ash affects UK airspace.
Some 500,000 passengers on 9,000 flights come in and out of UK airspace every day. The latest crisis was sparked by the eruption of Icelands Grimsvotn volcano, which has been spewing out a 13-mile high tower of ash since Saturday.
The Met Office said the ash reached the northern coast of Britain around 6pm yesterday.
The whole of Scotland was forecast tobe covered by a high concentration of ash by 6am today, while lower concentrations will cover Ireland, parts of mid and north Wales and Northumbria.
Airports in Newcastle, Glasgow, Belfast and Edinburgh could all be hit.
Loganair has ca! ncelled all its flights due to depart between 6am and 1pm today. Its services are mostlywithin Scotland, but some cancelled flights are to Birmingham and Belfast.
As well as President Obamas early flight, the Barcelona football squad will also travel to London earlier than scheduled for Saturdays Champions League final against Manchester United at Wembley.
Mr Hammond said: There have already been some modest delays to flights, particularly those crossing the Atlantic ... and there could be further disruption later in the week, but we are doing everything we can to keepthis to a minimum.
Grey skies: Emergency services vehicles in Kirkjubaearklaustur are covered in a thick layer of the volcanic ash from clouds that are now passing over Britain
Write caption here
The ash billows into the sky from the Grimsvotn volcano, under the Vatnajokull glacier in south east Iceland
The huge puffs of ash from the active volcano could ruin many people's plans to jet off as it starts to drift into Europe
Protect! ed: Farm ers Thormar Eller and Henny Hrund go to check their livestock as the ash cloud creates breathing problems for themselves and their animals
A British Airways jumbo jet was grounded in Canada on Sunday following fears the engines had been contaminated with volcanic ash during a transatlantic crossing. But BA said the move had been precautionary and that no evidence of volcanic ash had been found.
In April last year, UK airspace was shut for six days when volcanic ash hit the British Isles.
Under the old zero tolerance to ash rules planes were grounded for fear that particles from the volcano could clog up engines.
The ban which cost up to 2billion and led to disruption for ten million passengers was only overturned after pressure from airline chiefs who insisted their planes could fly safely through low concentrations of volcanic ash.
Under new rules ash concentrations will be measured and graded. Most planes will be able to fly in low and medium densities of ash, but barred if ash levels are high.
It could be worse than the last time
By MICHAEL HANLON
One could be forgiven for thinking that someone up there, or rather down there, doesnt like aeroplanes flying overhead. Just 13 months after the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajkull spewed forth a vast cloud of ash and grounded 100,000 flights over the North Atlantic, another of the countrys huge volcanoes, Grimsvotn, is threatening to do the same.
Nordic myth has it that Iceland is home to races of elves and subterranean trolls, guardians of the hot springs, geysers and volcanoes which have created its extraordinary landscape. Big volcanic eruptions which have caused terrible famines in the past were traditionally taken as a sign that the gods were unhappy.
Centuries ago, the eruption of Grimsvotn which lies in the south of the island would be a sign thatthe trolls were very displeased (indeed, in 1743 an eruption of the same volcano killed a quarter of the Icelandic population! ). Today , this spectacular eruption is creating a massive headache for the aviation authorities, airlines and travellers.
This latest shot shows the ash cloud (the reddish colour) swirling into the atmosphere after spewing from the Grimsvotn volcano
Ash from the Grimsvotn volcano hanging in the sky over Iceland. The cloud has spewed 12 miles into the atmosphere
Stunning: As the volcano erupts, huge dark ash and storm clouds gather across the Icelandic skyline
Stretching 13 miles into the stratosphere, as this ash cloud casts a rather familiar pall across the British Isles and north-west Europe, the fear is that the coming bank holiday weekend, one of the busiest travel periods of the year, will be severely disrupted.
The nightmare scenario is that Britain faces the prospect, yet again, of aircraft being grounded for days or even weeks. This is a far larger eruption than that of last year, and the biggest eruption in Iceland for 50 years. Last year, ten million passengers saw their flights cancelled or delayed as a no-fly zone operated across much of Europe for a week. Potentially, this yearseruption could be even worse.
Grimsvotn, Icelands most active volcano ! (a measu re of the frequency of its activity, although not necessarily the severity of its eruptions on average the mountain erupts every five years), started spewing ash on Saturday. It is a sub-glacial volcano, lying under a 600ft-thick pancake of ice, or the Vatnajokull glacier, which the recent eruption has simply burnt straightthrough.
The trouble with Iceland is that it sits bang on the join between two of the Earths tectonic plates the North American plate and the Eurasian Plate. Currents deep in the Earth are pulling these plates apart. Molten rock or lava rises up to fillthe resulting cracks and fissures, resulting in Icelands spectacular volcanic landscape.
Lastyears disruptive eruption and this one are not related; Eyjafjallajkull and Grimsvotn are less than 100 miles apart, but they lie on different faultlines and are fed by separate chambers of molten rock underground.
It is, say geologists, pure coincidence and bad luck that led to such similar incidents so close to one another. Indeed, a large eruption of Grimsvotn in 2004 passed without incident, as the prevailing winds carried the ash far away from the busy air corridors crossing the Atlantic.
In the case of the current eruption, the initial signs are not good. According to Dr Dave McGarvie, a volcanologist at the Open University, Grimsvotn is erupting ten to 100 times more material into the air per second than Eyjafjallajkull.
Dr McGarvie explains that while last years eruption was, after an initial period when ice and lava mixed, largely dry, the Grimsvotn lava is involved with intense and explosive interactions with water.
Basically, molten basalt rock at a temperature of 1000c or more is meeting glacial ice and cold water. The result is an explosion of steam that is driving fine ash particles fragments of solidified lava high into the air. It is these abrasive ash particle! s that p ose a danger to aircraft, with the potential to wreck the delicate, rapidly whirling innards of their engines.
This is not simply a theoretical risk; in June 1982, a British Airways Boeing 747 lost all power while flying through a plume of ash generated by an Indonesian volcano. It was only through great skill and some luck that the crew managed to restart the engines and land the plane safely.
So what are the prospects of a repeat of last years disruption? Although the initial signs are alarming, there are subtle differences between the two eruptions that mean the airlines (and passengers) may just get away with it. The Eyjafjallajkull eruption produced a very fine, glassy ash which stayed in the atmosphere for days.
Grimsvotns basaltic lava is heavier,clumpier and forms larger ash particles which should fall from the sky much more quickly. And the eruption already seems to be literally running out of steam the plume is only half the height it reached at the weekend. Last year, some airlines criticised aviation authorities for being overcautious. But research by engineers at Copenhagen and Reykjavik Universities shows that the risk to plane engines was higher than many assumed and that the ban was almost certainly the right thingto do in the circumstances.
Since then, however, there has been acareful reassessment of the rules governing aviation and volcanic ash. Aircraft are now allowed to operate in ash concentrations of up to 4mg per cubic metre provided a thorough inspection takes place after landing. Engines are quite tolerant of this stuff, says Dr Colin Brown, of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers, adding that ash concentrations which nearly destroyed BA009 over Indonesia in 1982 approached 2000mg per cubic metre.
What happens now depends on three things. How long the volcano continues to erupt (this could be days or just hours); how the airlines decide to interpret the ash guidelines issued by the Civil Aviation Authority which is unknown and, l! astly,th e weather.
With a fair wind and a bit of geological luck, holidaymakers might manage to get away as planned this weekend.
But if, like the millions of Britons who enjoyed the blissfully silent skies of April last year, Icelands trolls and elves decide they too appreciate the silence of plane-free skies, we could be looking at yet another week of travel nightmare for millions.
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