London airports reopen as European flights resume

After almost a week of stranded passengers, cancelled flights, and airline losses estimated at $1.7 billion caused by ash which had drifted over parts of Europe from the eruption of Iceland's Eyjafjallajökull volcano, flights resumed on Wednesday, April 21, to and from Europe. The European air traffic control agency, Eurocontrol, estimates that 75% of scheduled flights will operate, with a full schedule in effect on Thursday, as previously stranded aircraft become available. On Tuesday, April 20, some flights were allowed to depart from Paris, Amsterdam, and Frankfurt, but Heathrow (LHR) and other London airports were kept closed.

Over 95,000 flights have been cancelled, and there is a huge backlog of travellers that are still waiting to be accommodated. It will take time, several days or longer to cope with and clear all those effected by the volcanic disruptions.

PHOTO CAPTIONS: (ABOVE LEFT) Antge Blumer, left, and Katja Rieck, second from right, wait for their husbands, who just flew in from Paris on an Air France flight, with their children, Finn Blumer, 3, second from left, and Greta Rieck, 3, at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, Tuesday, April 20, 2010. Both of their husbands' flights were delayed by an active volcano in Iceland. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig); (BELOW RIGHT) Technicians check the jet engine of the first airplane to land at Arlanda Airport, Stockholm, Sweden, for evidence of volcanic ash, Monday April 19, 2010. The Airbus 330 of the Scandinavian Airlines, flew from the USA to land in Stockholm. Volcanic ash from a volcano in Iceland has caused widespread cancellations of European air travel for several days. (AP Photo/Scanpix Sweden/Johan Nilsson); (BELOW LEFT) An Icelandair plane takes off from Glasgow International Airport traveling to Reykjavik in Iceland, as flights resume after disruption ash from a volcano in Iceland choked the jet age to a halt Tuesday, April 20 2010. (AP Photo/Chris Clark); (BELOW RIGHT LOWER) Swedish born journalist Sara Persson who was stranded in London (Photo courtesy of Sara Persson); (BELOW LEFT BOTTOM) Airbus A321 on final approach to Healthrow (Wikipedia / Common Usage )

A video follows this article with news footage of London's Heathrow Airport.

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Aviation law and compensation

This has been the longest shutdown of air traffic over Europe since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York. British Airways and other carriers have asked the European Union and the UK government for financial compensation. Under EU regulations, most passengers with confirmed reservations on a European carrier who were stranded by the air space closure, were entitled to meals, lodging, and other assistance.

The Montreal, Canada based International Air Transport Association (IATA), estimated that airline revenue losses from cancelled flights were over 200 million dollars daily. According to NPR's The World, which is produced in association with the BBC, limited test flights revealed little engine damage and "no variations in the aircraft’s normal operational performance". Anthony Council, a spokesperson for IATA stated, "Things should have been handled much better.  In this case we need to be much more accurate and much more definitive in the way that these decisions are made so that we ensure that safety is maintained at the same time, keep air space open as much as possible."

Yesterday we conducted a telephone interview with Swedish born journalist Sara Persson, who has been stranded in London, after arriving there from Beirut on April 13, just prior to the volcanic eruption. Ms. Persson's remarks are shown in bold type below.

Q. What have you observed from your extended stay in London?

"The Hilton Metropole hotel has a mix of stranded people trying to get to destinations around the world. Most to whom I have spoken with are accepting this calmly, as something beyond their control. I personally have friends and relatives in Ireland, Lebanon, Thailand, Portugal, and the Canary Islands who can't get back to Europe."

Q. How has the local media covered this story?

"It has been covered continuously. Some think the volcanic ash shutdown has to do with aircraft liability insurance by Boeing and Airbus, the various carriers, and individual governments. There has also been criticism over the actual degree of risk."

Q. Are there any personal lessons you have learned from this experience?

"Yes. It is human nature to organize our lives and make plans. We think we can decide our fate, but nature always has the final say, and reminds us that we're not that much in control of our destinies."

Q. Thank you Ms. Persson for this report.

Other aviation professionals are describing the flight disruptions as a wake up call for better surveillance and monitoring of the abrasive volcanic ash, which can fuse internally to high temperature jet engine parts, block air flow, and cause flame outs, as reported in our previous article. Karsten Benz, Lufthansa’s Vice President for Europe, commented to the BBC after his airline flew 10 planes through the ash cloud on the way back to Germany. According to Mr. Benz, "These airplanes were climbing up to 10,000 feet as well as to 26,000 feet.  We haven’t seen and can’t report any effects on engines or on engine performance.  Even fuselage and cockpit windows are left without any damage."

Iceland's civil protection agency said the Eyjafjallajokull volcano has lost nearly 80% of its intensity since the weekend, although the situation is still in flux. IATA chief Giovanni Bisignani called the economic impact of the six-day shutdown "devastating" and said that governments "must take their responsibility" and consider ways to compensate the airlines for lost revenue.

On the other side of the balance sheet, there are businesses that have benefited, including shopkeepers, those in the hotel and hospitality industries who have provided lodging for an estimated 2 million stranded guests, and residents who live under the flight path of Healthrow who received a windfall of a different sort, peace and quiet, which will only be a memory, now that flights have resumed.

Tell us your thoughts and experiences, especially if you were among those who had their travels disrupted. Please leave comments below or by email and subscribe to get future updates.