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3rd May 2010, 10:09 PM
It's Back........
Is the ash cloud chaos back? Volcanic plume shuts down Scottish and Irish airspace... and it could be heading for England
By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 5:13 AM on 4th May 2010
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* Scotland closes airspace around Outer Hebrides
* Irish airspace to be closed from 7am to 1pm
* Iceland Met Office: Ash is not as severe as last time
Iceland's troublesome volcano is set to cause more misery for air passengers as ash cloud threatens to shut down airspace over England.
Winds are blowing the ash cloud south from its current position above Ireland and Scotland where no-fly zones have already been imposed.
The Met Office said the new ash was likely to move into England's airspace.
Rumbling again: Ash continues to spew from Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano
Rumbling again: Ash continues to spew from Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano
But they stressed it was too early to say whether the ash that reached England would be concentrated enough to cause air travel restrictions.
'We can see from the charts that it is above Scotland and Ireland and at the moment it is being blown South East,' a spokesman said.
'As to whether it will affect flights in England, we just don't know yet.'
The huge new hook-shaped plume stretches from the Southernmost part of Iceland to the Northern tip of Spain.
But most of the concentrated ash is between ground level and 20,000 feet - whereas most commercial flights fly between 35,000 and 40,000 feet.
Last month hundreds of thousands of Britons were stranded abroad and faced long delays when European airspace was closed by the eruption of Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano.
Airlines including Ryanair and Aer Lingus - which cancelled morning services - advised passengers to check their websites for up-to-date information.
The skies over parts of Scotland were closed as a precaution tonight after an increased concentration of volcanic ash was detected in the atmosphere, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said.
Chaos: Hundreds of thousands of travellers were left stranded when European airspace was closed for almost a week after eruptions from the Icelandic volcano
Chaos: Hundreds of thousands of travellers were left stranded when European airspace was closed for almost a week after eruptions from the Icelandic volcano
The ash is forecast to exceed the safe level agreed by the CAA and airlines in the Outer Hebrides, off the west coast of Scotland, tomorrow.
Airspace over the Outer Hebrides was closed to all operations at 6pm following advice from the Met Office.
The closures could see flights to and from the Western Isles cancelled but the situation will be constantly reviewed.
A CAA spokesman said that due to 'increased concentrations of volcanic ash in the atmosphere' there would be 'limited airspace closures in Scotland, which are expected to impact local airport operations this evening and tomorrow morning'.
'The closures will mean operations from Barra and Benbecula will cease until airspace reopens.'
Flights in and out of Ireland will be grounded for six hours this morning.
The Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) revealed restrictions will be imposed from 7am to 1pm as a dense plume travels across the island.
The authority said the decision to ground aircraft was based on the safety risks to crews and passengers as a result of the drift south of the volcanic ash cloud caused by the north-easterly winds.
Eamon Brennan, chief executive of the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA), said over-flights of Ireland from the UK and Europe would not be impacted, with flights in mainland Europe operating normally.
'What's unusual about this is that we are the country affected in Europe, it may affect parts of Scotland later in the day,' Mr Brennan said.
Belfast International Airport and George Best Belfast City Airport in Northern Ireland both said flights are expected to run as normal although some airlines suspended services.
The IAA said information from the Volcanic Ash Advice Centre (VAAC) showed Ireland falls within the predicted area of ash concentrations that exceed acceptable engine manufacturer tolerance levels.
More...
* Boy, nine, forced to attend Australian school after he is stranded by volcanic ash fiasco
Mr Brennan said that based on the new regime imposed in Europe last week, officials had no choice but to impose a no-fly zone and a 60-mile buffer zone which would effectively close Shannon and Dublin airports.
'The decision is based on the safety risks to crews and passengers as a result of the drift south of the volcanic ash cloud caused by the north easterly winds,' he added.
Passengers were warned not to travel to airports unless their flights were departing.
Almost 440 flights had been due to depart and fly in to Dublin Airport throughout the day, with more from Cork and Shannon in the south of the country and Ireland's smaller regional airports in Galway, Sligo, Ireland West (Knock), Donegal, Cork and Kerry.
Ryanair cancelled all flights to and from the Republic of Ireland, Belfast and Derry City from 6am to 2pm.
Aer Lingus confirmed all its UK and European flights scheduled to depart and arrive into Dublin, Cork, Shannon and Belfast prior to 1pm were also cancelled.
However most transatlantic services to the U.S. will operate as normal.
Aer Arann was already forced to cancel services to and from Derry and Donegal airports.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1271346/Iceland-volcano-Ash-cloud-returns-grounds-flights-Ireland.html?ITO=socialnet-twitter-dmailnews#ixzz0mvzFf8jP
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1271346/Iceland-volcano-Ash-cloud-returns-grounds-flights-Ireland.html?ITO=socialnet-twitter-dmailnews
Is the ash cloud chaos back? Volcanic plume shuts down Scottish and Irish airspace... and it could be heading for England
By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 5:13 AM on 4th May 2010
* Comments (0)
* Add to My Stories
* Scotland closes airspace around Outer Hebrides
* Irish airspace to be closed from 7am to 1pm
* Iceland Met Office: Ash is not as severe as last time
Iceland's troublesome volcano is set to cause more misery for air passengers as ash cloud threatens to shut down airspace over England.
Winds are blowing the ash cloud south from its current position above Ireland and Scotland where no-fly zones have already been imposed.
The Met Office said the new ash was likely to move into England's airspace.
Rumbling again: Ash continues to spew from Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano
Rumbling again: Ash continues to spew from Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano
But they stressed it was too early to say whether the ash that reached England would be concentrated enough to cause air travel restrictions.
'We can see from the charts that it is above Scotland and Ireland and at the moment it is being blown South East,' a spokesman said.
'As to whether it will affect flights in England, we just don't know yet.'
The huge new hook-shaped plume stretches from the Southernmost part of Iceland to the Northern tip of Spain.
But most of the concentrated ash is between ground level and 20,000 feet - whereas most commercial flights fly between 35,000 and 40,000 feet.
Last month hundreds of thousands of Britons were stranded abroad and faced long delays when European airspace was closed by the eruption of Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano.
Airlines including Ryanair and Aer Lingus - which cancelled morning services - advised passengers to check their websites for up-to-date information.
The skies over parts of Scotland were closed as a precaution tonight after an increased concentration of volcanic ash was detected in the atmosphere, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said.
Chaos: Hundreds of thousands of travellers were left stranded when European airspace was closed for almost a week after eruptions from the Icelandic volcano
Chaos: Hundreds of thousands of travellers were left stranded when European airspace was closed for almost a week after eruptions from the Icelandic volcano
The ash is forecast to exceed the safe level agreed by the CAA and airlines in the Outer Hebrides, off the west coast of Scotland, tomorrow.
Airspace over the Outer Hebrides was closed to all operations at 6pm following advice from the Met Office.
The closures could see flights to and from the Western Isles cancelled but the situation will be constantly reviewed.
A CAA spokesman said that due to 'increased concentrations of volcanic ash in the atmosphere' there would be 'limited airspace closures in Scotland, which are expected to impact local airport operations this evening and tomorrow morning'.
'The closures will mean operations from Barra and Benbecula will cease until airspace reopens.'
Flights in and out of Ireland will be grounded for six hours this morning.
The Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) revealed restrictions will be imposed from 7am to 1pm as a dense plume travels across the island.
The authority said the decision to ground aircraft was based on the safety risks to crews and passengers as a result of the drift south of the volcanic ash cloud caused by the north-easterly winds.
Eamon Brennan, chief executive of the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA), said over-flights of Ireland from the UK and Europe would not be impacted, with flights in mainland Europe operating normally.
'What's unusual about this is that we are the country affected in Europe, it may affect parts of Scotland later in the day,' Mr Brennan said.
Belfast International Airport and George Best Belfast City Airport in Northern Ireland both said flights are expected to run as normal although some airlines suspended services.
The IAA said information from the Volcanic Ash Advice Centre (VAAC) showed Ireland falls within the predicted area of ash concentrations that exceed acceptable engine manufacturer tolerance levels.
More...
* Boy, nine, forced to attend Australian school after he is stranded by volcanic ash fiasco
Mr Brennan said that based on the new regime imposed in Europe last week, officials had no choice but to impose a no-fly zone and a 60-mile buffer zone which would effectively close Shannon and Dublin airports.
'The decision is based on the safety risks to crews and passengers as a result of the drift south of the volcanic ash cloud caused by the north easterly winds,' he added.
Passengers were warned not to travel to airports unless their flights were departing.
Almost 440 flights had been due to depart and fly in to Dublin Airport throughout the day, with more from Cork and Shannon in the south of the country and Ireland's smaller regional airports in Galway, Sligo, Ireland West (Knock), Donegal, Cork and Kerry.
Ryanair cancelled all flights to and from the Republic of Ireland, Belfast and Derry City from 6am to 2pm.
Aer Lingus confirmed all its UK and European flights scheduled to depart and arrive into Dublin, Cork, Shannon and Belfast prior to 1pm were also cancelled.
However most transatlantic services to the U.S. will operate as normal.
Aer Arann was already forced to cancel services to and from Derry and Donegal airports.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1271346/Iceland-volcano-Ash-cloud-returns-grounds-flights-Ireland.html?ITO=socialnet-twitter-dmailnews#ixzz0mvzFf8jP
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1271346/Iceland-volcano-Ash-cloud-returns-grounds-flights-Ireland.html?ITO=socialnet-twitter-dmailnews