As a ‘volcanic ash victim’, I became all too aware of the frustration of the many thousands of travellers left at the mercy of the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajoekull over the last 10 days. My flight departure was scheduled for April 17th, but I finally arrived in Bangalore on the 25th. But should I have?
Airspace in and around Europe was closed for a total of six days with only a handful of test flights going on. And all the while, airlines became more concerned about the loss of revenue as time flew by. So after calls for the government to start contributing to bail out expense claims and pour more money into the ‘repatriation’ effort for Brits stranded abroad, airspace was miraculously deemed safe to fly in.
Looking at the history of volcanic ash clouds, surely, a basic view of the facts suggests that this could be a grave mistake. The infamous flight that flew into the ash of Mount Galunggung after it erupted in Indonesia on 24th June 1982 and was lucky to restart its engines proves that ash hovers in the air and poses considerable risk up to three weeks after eruption. On 13th July 1982, another flight in the same area suffered a similar fate, yet luck was on its side as well.
Yes, the globe is suffering from its worst economic setback since the Wall Street crash. But will pushing aside scientific evidence and historical fact in order to save crucial pounds, pence and euros be worth it if a 747 turns into a gliding bomb that lands in the middle of Europe tomorrow?
Hopefully, we shall never know. But the governments of Europe will have some severe questions to answer if luck is not on their side.
Contributed by Jenny-Wren Charlton
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