Iceland volcano: Airlines face 'logistical nightmare'
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The fallout from the Icelandic volcano will be felt a long time after the ash has settled.
For while the majority of flights may be back in the air by the beginning of next week, it will be many more days before the airlines have got their schedules back on track.
And that means more delayed flights for thousands of passengers, many of whom may be under the false impression that, once the ash clears, planes will be free to fly as normal.
"Airlines face a logistical nightmare," explains Barry Turner-Woods, contributing editor of Airlines World.
Not only will there be a backlog of flights to clear, but planes are stranded across the world in destinations thousands of miles from where they need to be.
Domino effect
Flight schedules are intricate and complex, and the consequences of missing just one flight, let alone hundreds, can be far reaching
For example, as John Strickland, director of the aviation consultancy JLS Consulting, explains, an Air New Zealand flight from Hong Kong to London was forced to land in Frankfurt.
As a result, it had to cancel the flight back to Hong Kong. Another of the carrier's aircraft got into London from Los Angeles before the airspace closure -but meaning it had to cancel a London to LA flight because that plane is stuck at Heathrow Airport.
The domino effect only loses momentum once the airlines can start flying again.
"This is a really big headache, especially for long-haul operators," says Mr Strickland.
"Airlines rely on a carefully-planned sequence of flights. Once the sequence is broken, it is very hard to catch up, particularly on complex routes such as the UK to Asia or Australia."
And as more airports fall under the volcanic cloud, the problem will only get worse, particularly when those airports are international hubs such as Paris and Frankfurt, both of which were closed on Friday.
More
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8625556.stm
For while the majority of flights may be back in the air by the beginning of next week, it will be many more days before the airlines have got their schedules back on track.
And that means more delayed flights for thousands of passengers, many of whom may be under the false impression that, once the ash clears, planes will be free to fly as normal.
"Airlines face a logistical nightmare," explains Barry Turner-Woods, contributing editor of Airlines World.
Not only will there be a backlog of flights to clear, but planes are stranded across the world in destinations thousands of miles from where they need to be.
Domino effect
Flight schedules are intricate and complex, and the consequences of missing just one flight, let alone hundreds, can be far reaching
For example, as John Strickland, director of the aviation consultancy JLS Consulting, explains, an Air New Zealand flight from Hong Kong to London was forced to land in Frankfurt.
As a result, it had to cancel the flight back to Hong Kong. Another of the carrier's aircraft got into London from Los Angeles before the airspace closure -but meaning it had to cancel a London to LA flight because that plane is stuck at Heathrow Airport.
The domino effect only loses momentum once the airlines can start flying again.
"This is a really big headache, especially for long-haul operators," says Mr Strickland.
"Airlines rely on a carefully-planned sequence of flights. Once the sequence is broken, it is very hard to catch up, particularly on complex routes such as the UK to Asia or Australia."
And as more airports fall under the volcanic cloud, the problem will only get worse, particularly when those airports are international hubs such as Paris and Frankfurt, both of which were closed on Friday.
More
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8625556.stm
