Britain's airspace was closed under false pretences, with satellite images revealing there was no doomsday volcanic ash cloud over the entire country.
Skies fell quiet for six days, leaving as many as 500,000 Britons stranded overseas and costing airlines hundreds of millions of pounds.
Estimates put the number of Britons still stuck abroad at 35,000.
However, new evidence shows there was no all-encompassing cloud and, where dust was present, it was often so thin that it posed no risk.
The satellite images demonstrate that the skies were largely clear, which will not surprise the millions who enjoyed the fine, hot weather during the flight ban.
Jim McKenna, the Civil Aviation Authority's head of airworthiness, strategy and policy, admitted: 'It's obvious that at the start of this crisis there was a lack of definitive data.
False alarm? Satellite images have revealed there may never have been a doomsday volcanic ash cloud over the UK (file picture)
'It's also true that for some of the time, the density of ash above the UK was close to undetectable.'
The satellite images will be used by airlines in their battle to win tens of millions of pounds in compensation from governments for their losses.
The National Air Traffic Control Service decision to ban flights was based on Met Office computer models which painted a picture of a cloud of ash being blown south from the Eyjafjallajokull volcano.
These models should have been tested by the Met Office's main research plane, a BAE 146 jet, but it was in a hangar to be repainted and could not be sent up until last Tuesday - the last day of the ban.
Evidence has emerged that the maximum density of the ash was only about one 20th of the limit that scientists, the Government, and aircraft and engine manufacturers have now decided is safe.
British Airways chief Willie Walsh always insisted the total shutdown went too far.
'My personal belief is that we could have safely continued operating for a period,' he said.
Mark Tanzer, chief executive of Britain's ABTA, which represents British travel agents and tour operators, said about 100,000 stranded British travellers should have been returned home by Monday morning.
About 35,000 more will remain marooned until Friday, the group said.
'While most flights are back to normal, and most stranded British passengers will be back by the end of this weekend, there is still quite a high level of disruption in some destinations.
'In some areas of the world, there is a significant lack of air capacity to enable British people to be returned quickly,' Tanzer said.
Many Icelandic airports are closed and though authorities say Eyjafjallajokull is now producing much less ash, they confirmed no signs of the eruption ending
On 15 April 2010, airspace was closed over Britain and most of Europe.
Airspace opened again on 21 April 2010.
NATO was carrying out a large airforce exercise in Europe between 12 April and 22 April 2010.
On 25 April 2010, The Mail on Sunday (The ash cloud that never was.) reports that:
1. During the crisis, the main aircraft used by the UK Meteorological Office to measure ash density was grounded, 'as it was due to be repainted'.
2. Computers at the Met Office produced maps showing the ash would cover an area stretching from Russia to Newfoundland.
But across almost all of this area, there was virtually no ash at all.
There was none visible to satellites.
3. The maximum density of ash over Britain was about one twentieth of the limit that scientists, the Government, and aircraft and engine manufacturers have now decided is safe.
Jim McKenna, the Civil Aviation Authority's head of Airworthiness, Strategy and Policy has admitted: 'It's also true that for some of the time, the density of ash above the UK was close to undetectable.'
Was the Iceland volcano story faked?
On 20 April 2010, at MMnews - Webcam - Vulkan friedlich - [ Translate this page ], we read that:
1. The media manipulated the images of the eruption of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano.
The media used images of the volcano which were a week old.
Imagery of an eruption was shown at a time when the mountain was peaceful.
2. If there was a lot of ash, filming the volcano would be difficult. The lens would be covered in ash?
3. There have always been volcanic eruptions in Iceland. Many were worse than the present eruption. But past eruptions have not caused problems for airlines.
4. There have been very big eruptions from the largest volcano in Europe, Mount Etna in Sicily.
Etna erupted in 2002.
Satellite images showed a many hundred of kilometer long time plume of smoke from Etna.
But neither smoke nor ash stopped air traffic at that time.
"Some wonder whether there is something else going on under the cover of earthquake eruptions, such as a test run to shut down air travel internationally."
From 12 April to 22 April 2010, NATO airforces took part in Exercise BRILLIANT ARDENT 10. (http://www.usafe.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123199666)
This large scale NATO Response Force Air Live Exercise was hosted by Germany. (arthurzbygniew.blogspot/)
So, they cleared the air of civil aircraft?
"NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said on 19 April 2010 that the ash cloud was not affecting the alliance's military readiness." (Iceland eruption )
On 20 April 2010, The Mail reported that 40 test flights across Europe found NO evidence of ash in jet engines, windows or lubrication systems. (Iceland volcano eruption: Met Office criticised. )
Matthias Ruete, the European Commission's director general of transport, said air traffic authorities should not have imposed a widespread ban on flights.
Iceland has had fairly frequent volcanic eruptions and sometimes they have gone on for many months.
None of the previous eruptions has affected international air travel in the same way as the April 2010 eruption.
As the Telegraph points out today, "Volcanoes have pumped ash plumes of this size and bigger into the atmosphere many times in the past without turning an entire continent into a no-fly zone."
Volcanic erruptions are fairly frequent in Indonesia.
In 1982, in Indonesia, a British Airways Jumbo flew directly over an erupting volcano and lost power to all its engines.
Large rocks were found in the engines.
The jumbo did regain power and landed safely.
arthurzbygniew.blogspot/ drew our attention to an article at rense, (rense.com) by F. William Engdahl.
Among the points made:
1. After the eruption of the Eyjafjallajoekull volcano in Iceland on April 14 air traffic across Europe was grounded.
2. Joachim Hunold, CEO of Germany's second largest carrier, Air Berlin, stated in Bild am Sonntag, "not one single weather ballon has been put up in Germany to measure if and how much volcanic ash there is in the air. The closing of the airspace is entirely based on the results of a computer simulation at the Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC) in England."
3. Veteran Air France pilot, Steven Savignol, said: "I can tell you from my own experience that with blue skies, aircrafts can fly perfectly and very safely. They made test flights with Air France, KLM, Lufthansa and of course, all is ok!"
4. The VAAC in England was working from a "computer simulation," and "has not even conducted an actual sky ash measurement."
The agency responsible for Volcanic Ash measurement for the region, including Iceland, is Britain's "Met Office," the UK's National Weather Service, which in turn is a Trading Fund within the Ministry of Defence, operating on a commercial basis under set targets according to their website.
5. The Iceland eruption is a relatively minor one.
6. Modern jet aircraft engines are robust, says Air France's Savignol.
They have to face not only the hazards of bird strikes, but rain, hail and even salt spray on take-off from coastal airports. Furthermore, sand is a common hazard from dust storms and from desert airfields.
7. The blanket ban under clear blue skies and glorious sunshine across Europe made some wonder whether there was something else going on under the cover of earthquake eruptions, such as a test run to shut down air travel internationally.
Since no one has ever been injured from an aircraft disabled by a volcanic eruption, it is a question that lingers.
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1 comment:
I didn't see, nor did I hear, a single aircraft during the training excercises. I can't see how that could have been possible, without a single person mentioning it. Geez, even the gliders here in Germany were grounded! Even weather balloons were grounded?? Yeah, I believe it was a conspiracy of some sorts, even to reave havoc, like in the movie, The Rat Race... to see how the ants scramble when you take away their air travel priviledges. Or to ruin a few airlines and weaken the european economy.
What gets me, is that its the same Met Office that started and cultivated the Warming Global Scam!! I think its time to clean house over there, and get real scientists there, not ones with agendas.
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