Air chaos ‘could last past the weekend’

THE crisis which has brought Ireland’s airlines to a standstill could last for days, the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) has confirmed.

A spokesperson for the authority said it was possible the flight cancellations and airport closures which have devastated large parts of northern Europe could “potentially” last past the weekend.

The comment came after airlines across northern Europe were grounded when a major volcanic eruption at Eyjafjallajokull in southern Iceland released huge quantities of ash and steam into the sky at midnight on Wednesday.

Fine ash poses a serious risk to planes, as it can disrupt their engines, crippling the vehicles in mid-flight.

In 1982, a disaster connected to an erupting volcano in Indonesia was narrowly averted when all four engines of a British Airways plane cut out 10,000 feet above ground after becoming clogged with ash.

Currently, the Icelandic cloud has reached as far as the southern half of Britain, with reports from the Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre stating it is growing in size as more substances are released from Eyjafjallajokull.

As a result of the safety concerns, over 70,000 passengers flying to or from Ireland yesterday saw their holiday plans ruined, with the strong possibility that thousands more face a similar fate over the coming days.

At Dublin airport, 314 of the 384 scheduled national, international and transatlantic flights failed to depart, affecting almost 50,000 passengers, with just 70 early morning departures or arrivals leaving before the major transport hub was closed at midday.

The situation was repeated at Cork airport, which closed for the day just after 2pm after the vast majority of flights were cancelled, affecting more than 5,500 people.

Out of 60 scheduled inbound and outbound journeys to destinations such as Malaga, Lanzarote, London, Paris and Poznan in Poland, just eight early morning flights were able to take off, with similar problems being reported at Shannon and Knock.

All commercial flights at the City of Derry Airport and George Best City Airport in Belfast have been grounded until further notice.

Facilities in Britain, France, the Netherlands, Germany and other parts of northern Europe have suffered a similar fate.

Ryanair was forced to cancel 600 flights – approximately 40% of its entire northern European schedule – including 150 journeys to and from Ireland.

Similarly, Aer Lingus – which is waving any fee for passengers who need to change their flights due to the crisis – said all British and European flights scheduled to depart Dublin, Cork, Shannon, Belfast, London Gatwick and Heathrow up to 1pm today have been cancelled.

However, it added that some journeys to US destinations may operate with delays, with the exception of flight EI 111 from Shannon to New York which has been cancelled.

Ferry operators said members of the public were flocking to use their services, with Irish Ferries and Stena Line officials describing the day as their busiest in 30 years.

The IAA will decide later today whether it is safe for planes to return to the skies.