Volcano Grounds 'Planes

[Bledlow]

Er, we always cycle on to and off from ferries.   Is there any other way?   

Some ferries you ride a train on to. I've walked on to others. But yes, cycling has worked for me, on quite a few occasions, to a variety of destinations. I've been one of over 100 people cycling on to a ferry, more than once.

The ferry companies all seem quite used to it.

Light plane circling low over Reading this afternoon. Only air traffic for a couple of days. Beautiful clear blue sky, with NO CONTRAILS!

[rogerzilla]

I used to love the Torpoint ferry.  As well as riding my bike onto it, I could get a cup of coffee during the crossing (which is free for bikes).  Much more fun than the Tamar Bridge.

The Cremyll passenger ferry also took bikes, but you had to pay for that one and it was a bit awkward lifting your bike down into a small boat.

[Polar Bear]

Er, we always cycle on to and off from ferries.   Is there any other way?   

Some ferries you ride a train on to. I've walked on to others. But yes, cycling has worked for me, on quite a few occasions, to a variety of destinations. I've been one of over 100 people cycling on to a ferry, more than once.

The ferry companies all seem quite used to it.

I've just remembered a couple of ferries between islands in Orkney that I had to carry the bike on and off from.  No vehicle access!

[andrewc]

Er, we always cycle on to and off from ferries.   Is there any other way?   

Yes, definitely. They make you walk onto the Stornoway ferry as the metal plates can be lethally slippery with water and diesel.

I'm sure I've cycled on and off the Stornoway ferry.   They won't let you ride on or off the ferries between Belfast & Liverpool,  bikes go on a special luggage trailer and you are taken to the ferry in a minibus.

[andrewc]

Just bumped into a friend*,  hubby is stuck in Barcelona.  If he can't get back in time I've been invited to use his tickets and escort a rather beautiful lady to a couple of concerts next week 

*I went to a concert in the week expecting to meet up with the pair of them, she was on her own, dressed up to the nines and insisted on taking me for cocktails afterward...

[mark]

Er, we always cycle on to and off from ferries.   Is there any other way?  

Yes, definitely. They make you walk onto the Stornoway ferry as the metal plates can be lethally slippery with water and diesel.

I'm sure I've cycled on and off the Stornoway ferry.   They won't let you ride on or off the ferries between Belfast & Liverpool,  bikes go on a special luggage trailer and you are taken to the ferry in a minibus.

I've cycled on and off the Ullapool-Stornoway ferry, as well as various other CalMac and Stena Line ferries. For Holyhead-Dublin last spring I was required to take the minibus while my bike went on the luggage trailer. I made it clear that I did not like being separated from my bike.

[Pancho]

Er, we always cycle on to and off from ferries.   Is there any other way?   

Yes, definitely. They make you walk onto the Stornoway ferry as the metal plates can be lethally slippery with water and diesel.

I saw a chap come a bad cropper as he tried to ride his thin wheeled road bike off the ferry at Cherbourg. My brother and I took the hint and timidly pushed our bikes ashore.

Only to fall off as we rode through the anti-foot-and-mouth sand and disinfectant trough that all vehicles had to pass through.

[Adrian]

Not everything is grounded.

A helicopter and a light aircraft came over Chester this morning, not very high and presumably piston engined.

I saw two light aircraft fly over Gatwick, presumably taking the opportunity, this afternoon.

[Andrij]

Great pic from b3ta.
 

[Asterix, the former Gaul.]

There is ash on all the cars in my street.  Like a mini Pompeii.  Except they didn't have cars in Pompeii and there's hardly any ash. Yet.

[Martin]

P&O ferries have announced they cannot take anymore foot passengers this weekend; although I suspect this is because they use one bus to take them from the terminal to the ferry and can't physically get any more on; it's no longer possible to walk from the check-in onto many ferries these days.

I would have thought Eurotunnel would seize a business opportunity and hire some coaches to ferry people from Folkestone Station to Calais station;

BTW do they still operate the cycle shuttle service?

We're worried that there's going to be a shortage of baby sweetcorns imported by air from Thailand.

there was some story on the BBC that in Canada this week all the bosses have to buy their secretaries flowers and at this time of year they have to get them all from Holland by air; I can forsee some disappointed bosses...

[Tourist Tony]

Not everything is grounded.

A helicopter and a light aircraft came over Chester this morning, not very high and presumably piston engined.

I saw two light aircraft fly over Gatwick, presumably taking the opportunity, this afternoon.

They are running approved flights (above 500') along the runway. Had a formation of Tiger Moths....

[oncemore]

Entirely selfish moan.....I just wish I knew whether or not we'll be flying from Gatwick to Egypt at 09.30 Monday. I assume 95% not. And I'd rather not be on the first test flight! But we'd have to leave here 10 hours before departure time and doesn't seem to be easy to be certain yes or no that far in advance.

At least if cancelled, as a package we'll get an alternative or straight full refund.

And could of course be worse.

[Zoidburg]

Yes it could be.

Ragnarök - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[bikenerd]

Lots of gliders circling the house this afternoon.  I guess they can fly wherever they want at the moment, although we don't see many planes, the approach to Oxford airport is further west than we are.

The entire conference I was supposed to be going to in China was cancelled.  Climate scientists grounded by atmospheric conditions irony.

[rower40]

No cheap tickets available on any long-distance trains; a friend of mine had a weekend break booked to Dublin, had to cancel, then planned to take the train to Edinburgh, but all the prices had gone up lots.

But does this mean that the Heathrow/Gatwick/Stansted Expresses are running empty?  Is anyone travelling to/from our airports?

[Kathy]

Looking south (towards Gatwick) was wierd today: no contrails! The normally criss-crossed sky was such a perfectly clear blue that it hurt my eyes to look at it.

It's just not natural!

[TimC]

Around half a million people directly or indirectly employed by aviation in UK are fervently hoping it doesn't go on long. At a cost of £200m a day, just in UK, there are several businesses in aviation already looking shaky. The cash outflow right now is horrendous, and it will get worse. It may well see more than one airline closed permanently.

The airline industry is one of the most heavily subsidised industries in the UK, and around the world. A few of them going bust will be no loss to the majority of people and we will get a few planes out of circulation permenantly which can't be a bad thing. Less noise, less polution, less money coming out of the tax payers coffers.

Really? You are referring, I assume, to the fact that aviation fuel isn't taxed. You're right, it's not. When international aviation treaties were negotiated, no workable method could be found of applying tax evenly worldwide. That is, if you like, a failure of politics, not some subversive trickery of the industry. I'd love you to show me in what other way the industry is 'subsidised'. There are no grants, no other tax breaks, nothing. And extra tax is levied, over and above all normal taxes, directly on the airlines for each ticket sold.

Of course there is also a human cost if an airline goes bust and people loose their jobs. Welcome to the real world where this happens to people every day in all sorts of industies. I've been made redundant 5 times in the past 20 years. Crap happens to all of us all the time but we just get on with life as well.

Are you trying to suggest that the airline industry is immune to economics, and doesn't see companies go bust? Can I refer you to the 40-odd airlines that have gone bust over the last 18 months? Don't tell me to get real - many of my friends are unemployed now, and some will remain so for a very long time. Many will have to move a long way away from UK to get another job. Many will have double your number of redundancies. Airlines are amongst the least secure employers, especially in UK where there are no, repeat no, government-subsidised companies.

[Frenchie]

We dont live under a low level flight path, and this may just be my imagination, but I am enjoying what seems to be a much quieter enviroment. I hope this continues.

Around half a million people directly or indirectly employed by aviation in UK are fervently hoping it doesn't go on long. At a cost of £200m a day, just in UK, there are several businesses in aviation already looking shaky. The cash outflow right now is horrendous, and it will get worse. It may well see more than one airline closed permanently.

And that's before the stranded passengers all start exercising their rights to refunds and compensation under EU Regs 261 and 264. I can see several carriers going to the wall because of this .

Indeed.

[Zoidburg]

I can see refunds, I can't see them getting compensation.

[Frenchie]

I can see refunds, I can't see them getting compensation.

I understand that expenses (e.g. hotels) are now due to be paid under new regs. That could be very expensive if/when people exercise their rights.

Of course the cost of staff and leased airplanes does not stop though earnings are cancelled.

[Zoidburg]

Thats fair enough but I what they won't be able to do is claim compensation for hurt feelings etc etc just because they did not get a flight.

There has been no neglect or deliberate poor service on the part of the airlines, it's a frikin volcano.

[MSeries]

Do the airlines have insurance against this sort of thing ? Does travel insurance cover it ?

[Zoidburg]

A lot of people must have payed by credit card so there must be some cover on that as well.

[Frenchie]

Do the airlines have insurance against this sort of thing ? Does travel insurance cover it ?

I understand that BA does not have such cover for example.