All UK Airports to reopen 2200 tonight

Hate to say it PeeDee, but its a)…;)

Cracking picture though, thanks for sharing.:)

FAKE! Air Dolomiti don’t even operate the BAe 146 now! 😀

I am (a) Blind (b) Don’t care enough…..
but I can’t even find a 146 in that lot.

Couldn’t agree more. Incidentally is Willie Walsh, Louis Walsh’s brother as there is 10 years age difference between them?

Because Willie Walsh put 26 UK inbound into the air and forced their hand. Nats hand, not Brown’s. And I’d be the first to blame the Government.

This morning.

FAKE! Air Dolomiti don’t even operate the BAe 146 now! 😀

PeeDee… LOVE it! 😀

This morning.

Blah blah blah snipped…. IMHO its the right decision and I’m glad its happened, but how can that be anything other than a political fudge?
Andy

Because Willie Walsh put 26 UK inbound into the air and forced their hand. Nats hand, not Brown’s. And I’d be the first to blame the Government.

Here’s an interesting story in the Guardian putting a slightly different light on the history of things.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/apr/21/airlines-flights-ban-airspace

IMHO its the right decision and I’m glad its happened, but how can that be anything other than a political fudge?

Andy

Because the politicians didn’t order the airspace closed. Politicians do not run NATS. Politicians had no say. That’s how this is not political.
All this was cause by experts at NATS advising the ash cloud could present a significant threat to aircraft. It was prudent to stop the planes from flying into it.
That it’s continued this long is likely more to do with worries of lawsuits should damage to a plane happen than anything else.

However, I agree that opening the airspace was the right decision.

Check out the getty image on the BBc news item about this, when you roll over the pic it says it is an aircraft taking off ! It is actually the model plane at the Heathrow tunnel access roundabout..Doh.

There is absolutely no indication that the government did anything except pressure NATS to open the airspace.
Core blimey, take those blinkers off, will ya!

Believe that if you wish. But if indeed the government did push NATS into opening UK airspace, with over 50% of all European flights operating today and the European model showing no risk of ash over the UK at lunchtime, it can only have been on the basis of the UK position being increasingly isolated and untennable. The evidence is as I highlighted above – the goalposts have been moved (aircraft tollerance to ash) whilst at the same time the met office says that it doesn’t know how much ash is in the air. IMHO its the right decision and I’m glad its happened, but how can that be anything other than a political fudge?

Andy

767(?) heading over Leighton Buzzard on approach to Luton at 20.20… just passed over my house.

I smell a political climb down based, as was said previously, on the UK position being increasingly exposed as untennable.

Andy

There is absolutely no indication that the government did anything except pressure NATS to open the airspace.
Core blimey, take those blinkers off, will ya!

G-CIVT (JUMBO! :D) has just touched down at LHR :D:D

3 more 747s on approach 😀

So the CAA says:

“The major barrier to resuming flight has been understanding tolerance levels of aircraft to ash. Manufacturers have now agreed increased tolerance levels in low ash density areas.”

And yet the latest Met Office ash charts say:

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/aviation/vaac/data/VAG_1271785386.png

RMK: NO SIG ASH ABOVE FL200. ASH CONCENTRATIONS UNKNOWN

So, whether they’ve changed the tollerance levels or not, how can they know whether the aircraft can tollerate the current levels when they don’t know how much ash there is in the air? :confused:

I smell a political climb down based, as was said previously, on the UK position being increasingly exposed as untennable.

Andy

more on their way too.

This is awesome. There is a whole gaggle of TCX birds making their way to heathrow and a formation of BA planes toon.

There’s a Jumbo over my house!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D:D:D:D

QTR001 is doing circles off the coast near Newcastle, I think he was going to Edinburgh , must bE off to LHR

Yup, even more rediculousness… If, as we are to believe, they’ve re-evaluated aircraft’s tollerance to ash, why is it not safe to land before 2200 and yet it is safe to land after 2200?

Andy

Yes it all got very silly.
I wonder how much is BA pressure and how much is beter knowlage of the ash clouds.
Looks like BA84 could be the first to land , he is over Birmingham at 26000feet

There is 6 BA flights doing rounds over West Ireland , Lands End,Wales and France all waiting for LHR to open

Yup, even more rediculousness… If, as we are to believe, they’ve re-evaluated aircraft’s tollerance to ash, why is it not safe to land before 2200 and yet it is safe to land after 2200?

Andy