The Iceland Volcano Thread

20:09 Gerard Fleming of Met Éireann says high pressure in the northwest is directing the ash towards Ireland - he does not see the weather pattern changing within the next few days

maquiladora wrote: »

UK air traffic ban extended until 13:00 tomorrow at the earliest.

The cloud of volcanic ash continues to cover much of the UK. Following a review of the latest Met Office information, NATS advises that restrictions will remain in place in UK controlled airspace until 1300 (UK time) tomorrow, Friday 16 April, at the earliest.

However, flights from Northern Ireland and the Western Isles of Scotland to and from Glasgow, Edinburgh and Prestwick may be allowed in the period from 0100 (UK time) to 1300 (UK time) tomorrow subject to individual co-ordination. North Atlantic traffic to and from Edinburgh, Glasgow, Prestwick and Belfast may also be allowed in the period.

We will review further Met Office information and at 0230 (UK time) tomorrow we will advise the arrangements that will be in place through to 1800 (UK time) tomorrow. However be aware that the situation cannot be said to be improving with any certainty as the forecast affected area appears to be closing in from east to west. We continue to work closely with airports, airlines, and the rest of Europe to understand and mitigate the implications of the volcanic eruption.

Min wrote: »

The volcanic activity said to be intensifying - RTE news.

REYKJAVIK (Reuters) – A volcanic eruption in Iceland, which has thrown up a 6-km (3.7 mile) high plume of ash and disrupted air traffic across northern Europe, has grown more intense, an expert said on Thursday.

The eruption under the Eyjafjallajokull glacier continued to spew large amounts of ash and smoke into the air and showed no signs of abating after 40 hours of activity, said Pall Einarsson, a geophysicist at the University of Iceland.

"The seismographs are showing that since this morning the intensity of the eruption seems to be growing," he said.

Hot fumes had melted up to a third of the glacial ice covering the crater, causing a nearby river to burst its banks, and frequent explosions on the floor of the crater sounded like bombs going off, he said.

Min wrote: »

The volcanic activity said to be intensifying - RTE news.

projectmayhem wrote: »

Nothing to do with the plume direction though. Flights will go from NI to Scotland from 1AM and the plume is moving eastwards according to Eurocontrol.

As time goes on it appears the 1PM deadline will allow people to fly. How limited that is we don't know. My flight is booked for 8:40PM but I could be put into a lengthy queue with the backlog.

LookingFor wrote: »

How does that work anyway? Are you sure you'd be bumped for other passengers? Do passengers who had flights cancelled not have to take the next available seat? Your booked seat isn't available to them...I don't think.

LookingFor wrote: »

I wouldn't be entirely sure about the way this thing will move or its repercussions for flights yet. If there is a reprieve as the high pressure moves more east it mightn't be very long lived looking at the forecast...airflow is to go more northerly again over the weekend, bringing air right down from iceland (according to the bit in the news report). If that were the case and the volcano was still erupting at that point there might only be a window of opportunity for flights if the dust moves sufficiently east in the shorter term. Whether it moves east 'enough' is another question too - a fairly wide area of proximity around the dust has been affected today so...it may go more east, but will it go east enough to open flights into London and the continent?

owenc wrote: »

i dont give a **** what you lot think i can report you. You cant get me banned this time.

alibabba wrote: »

In south east Galway and there is grey ash on my car now

owenc wrote: »

I dont know how people down south and in the south of england are reporting ash when according to the sat the cloud isnt even in england yet people must be seeing things? or am i looking at wrong thing.

Deep Easterly wrote: »

I am not sure. There was an awful lot of smoke passing by here today and this evening from bog fires around the place. Maybe this is the cause of the "white ash" as opposed to something more dramatic?

The Irish Aviation Authority has announced that it is lifting restrictions, with immediate effect, on flights to and from the State airports at Cork and Shannon and some of the regional airports.

However, as the latest reports from the Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre in London indicate that the ash cloud is still over the east coast, the restrictions will remain in force at Dublin airport until, at least, 11 am on Friday, 16th April. Restrictions also remain in force in large parts of the UK and Northern Europe.

This decision is based on the predicted path of the ash plume which shows a move to the east and south of Ireland. This will allow transatlantic flights and internal flights to take off and land at Shannon.

Mr. Donie Mooney, Director of Operations at the Irish Aviation Authority said that the Authority is satisfied that it is safe to fly to and from the State airports/regional airports on the western coast.

"We will continue to closely monitor the weather and once it is safe to fly into the east coast we will lift the restrictions at Dublin Airport when it is deemed safe to do so. We advise anybody booked on flights tomorrow to check with their airlines on a regular basis.

"Our priority is the safety of the pilots, crews and passengers on all flights. So we will not lift restrictions until we are satisfied that it is 100% safe to fly," he said.

The IAA will provide an update on the restrictions after 11 am on Friday, 16th April 2010.