Volcanic ash forces European airlines to cancel more than 130 flights to and from Scotland

[News_Editor]

Volcanic ash forces European airlines to cancel more than 130 flights to and from Scotland

2011-05-24 08:29:59 GMT+7 (ICT)

EDINBURGH (BNO NEWS) -- Several airlines have decided to cancel more than 130 flights to and from Scotland on Tuesday morning as volcanic ash is expected to cover the country.

The ash plume is coming from Grímsvötn, Iceland's most active volcano, which erupted on late Saturday afternoon at around 5.30 p.m. local time. It is believed to be the volcano's largest eruption in about 100 years, sending a plume of smoke more than 20 kilometers (12 miles) into the air.

A disruption similar to that of last year when Iceland's Eyjafjallajökull volcano erupted is not expected, in part because aviation rules have since been changed to allow more flexibility. The ash plume has also, so far, not reached mainland Europe.

But forecasters expect that a volcanic ash plume of high density will cover most if not all of Scotland by early Tuesday morning, forcing airlines to cancel their flights. Effects outside Scotland are expected to be minimal on Tuesday, although the plume could affect other countries later this week.

As of early Tuesday morning, five airlines said they had canceled a total of at least 134 commercial flights to and from Scotland on Tuesday. That number is expected to rise as some airlines had not yet decided on the status of their flights.

"Following forecasts of significant volcanic ash in Scottish airspace, British Airways has decided as a precaution that it will not operate any flights between London and Scotland on Tuesday May 24 that arrive in Scotland before 2 p.m. or depart from Scotland before 2 p.m.," British Airways said. "At present all other flights are unaffected."

The airline's website showed that 16 flights are canceled between London and Glasgow, 10 are canceled between London and Aberdeen, and 24 are canceled between London and Edinburgh on Tuesday morning.

Meanwhile, CityJet said it canceled five flights between London City Airport and the cities of Edinburgh and Dundee in Scotland. Aer Lingus said it canceled 11 flights to and from locations in Scotland.

But Eastern Airways, which operates commuter planes, reported the most cancellations. A notice on its website said the airline has been forced to cancel 52 scheduled service flights to and from Scotland on Tuesday.

Additionally, Dutch airline KLM said it has canceled 16 flights between Amsterdam and Aberdeen, Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Newcastle. "KLM expects to operate all other flights as scheduled," it said.

Since the massive flight disruptions last year, airlines in the United Kingdom are now allowed to operate in areas of medium and high density ash if they have a safety case which has been approved by the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). While most airlines will fly with medium density ash, no airline has requested to fly in high density ash clouds which is the case in Scotland on Tuesday.

"Our number one priority is to ensure the safety of people both onboard aircraft and on the ground. We can't rule out disruption, but the new arrangements that have been put in place since last year's ash cloud mean the aviation sector is better prepared and will help to reduce any disruption in the event that volcanic ash affects UK airspace," said CAA Chief Executive Andrew Haines.

The UK Met Office said it expects low to medium ash density to cover Ireland on early Tuesday morning, but all airlines are expected to operate nonetheless under the new rules. "The Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) does not expect that there will be any disruption to services in Irish airspace or at Irish airports for the next 24 hours," the agency said on late Monday evening.

Meanwhile, Keflavik International Airport - Iceland's main airport - was reopened on early Monday evening after it was closed on Sunday morning as a precaution. Flights are expected to travel on time to Iceland on Tuesday.

Earlier on Monday, Eurocontrol said it has for the first time activated the European Aviation Crisis Coordination Cell (EACCC) in order to coordinate a response that can mitigate any potential impact while maintaining established safety levels. EACCC was established by European Union (EU) Transport Ministers in May 2010 to respond to crisis situations.

The EACCC brings together representatives from Eurocontrol, the European Commission, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the EU Member States and air transport stakeholders. Its main role is to facilitate the management of crisis situations affecting aviation in the European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC) region.

The EACCC is further responsible for alerting the aviation community to an impending crisis and for proposing, coordinating and implementing the measures required to deal with it. A key function of the EACCC is therefore to keep all aviation stakeholders informed about the crisis, including the decisions that have been taken and the progress of the measures to deal with it.

The Grímsvötn Volcano is situated about 220 kilometers (136 miles) east-northeast of the country's capital Reykjavik and is located underneath Vatnajökull, Europe's largest glacier. Eruptions at Grímsvötn are frequent and usually occur with an interval of a few years. Most of these eruptions last a few days and are small in volume.

Historical and geological records show that there have been around 60 to 70 volcanic eruptions over the last eight centuries in the Grímsvötn volcano. The latest eruptions occurred in the years 2004, 1998, 1996, 1983 and 1934. None of these eruptions threatened lives or inhabited areas and all except one are classified as minor eruptions.

Typical eruptions at Grímsvötn last from two to fourteen days and little or limited volcanic ash is associated with these eruptions. Visible volcanic ash rarely reaches farther than the perimeter of the glacier Vatnajökull and effects on commercial air-traffic is usually limited. During the eruption in 2004, restrictions were put on air-traffic to the north of Iceland for five days and trans-Atlantic flights were re-routed to the south of Iceland. No airport closures were in effect.

The volcanic activity in the Grímsvötn volcanic system is periodic, officials say, and active periods last from about 100 to 150 years with more restful periods of a few decades in between. A period of increased activity seems to have started with the eruption in 1983.

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