servus

That's insane! I should get a cab license asap

jdf99

Here is my experience for what it's worth - was in Cannes yesterday when the word hit that BA had cancelled all flights from NCE to LHR. Rushed back to the hotel and found out that LHR was going to be closed at least until 9 AM today. Air Canada had still not cancelled any flights, so I called and was told that they couldn't do anything until the flights were actually cancelled. I was booked on a BA flight from NCE-LHR this morning and LHR-YYZ on Z class business seat. I had wanted to get out today through Germany, Austria or Switzerland- when they finally cancelled the flight, i used the rebooking tool and all of the alternate flights were out of Heathrow and subject to travel advisories as well, and there was no option to depart from a different airport.

Got the travel agent on it and AC offered to refund the unused fare but it was going to cost $5,000 dollars for a J seat ($2400 for Y) our of Frankfurt. She then found an open seat on Austrian for $3,000 and i took it as it was the last seat left on the aircraft. I wasn't very happy that both AC and Lufthansa were charging retail rates on the flights [which didn't leave anyway as the airports closed today].



Austrian crew told us that we were on the last flight out of the affected areas of Europe and Vienna airport was closing after we departed.
BTW - service was terrific, had a chef on board, have never seen so much food served on any airline ever.

The trains in france are on strike - some are running but very limited service

Stranger

Got a call from AC this afternoon.

They offered me a seat on 850 (to LHR) on Sunday, and let me keep my FRA reservation for Monday.

Seems like they are trying real hard to be useful. I am impressed.

Now if the jetstream would decide to move upper for a change... But of course, doesn't look like it's going to happen.

Meanwhile my son, who leaves in the US, is stranded in England with a bunch of colleagues. Virgin rebooked them on Monday. We may yet have lunch there on Monday? If the jetstream and/or the volcano would cooperate that is.

What's wrong with these guys in Iceland anyway? First they got bankrupt and voted not to pay their debts, and now, real revenge I suppose, they are sending the world all that ash crap?

Stranger

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/aviation...1271463398.png

Looks like they'll need to re-close Belfast and Scotland?

YVR Cockroach

Let's be fair. Iceland did not go bankrupt per se. Its (private) banks did and were subsequently nationalised. Iceland also, AFAIK, did not default on sovereign debt (i.e., debt issued by the Icelandic government).

Icelanders voted not to repay the governments of the U.K. and the Netherlands for cost of compensating British and Dutch (respectively) entities who had deposited funds at Icesave, an operation of some then-private Icelandic bank which was offering well above-market interest rates which received licences from British and Dutch regulators to operate in those markets. Iceland has a deposit insurance scheme but it only covers Icelanders. The U.K. and Netherland governments were pressuring Iceland to reimburse those respective governments for the cost of some €5 billion (IIRC) which worked out to be some $20,000 per Icelander, with interest accumulating at 5% until this was paid off. The Icelandic government had agreed to this but the President unexpectedly decided to refer it to the public (as was his constitutional right).

Icelanders are the victims of the neo-liberal dogma that has afflicted the poor and powerless many especially these past few years.

At any rate, my conspiracy theory is that Iceland has figured out how to control volcano eruptions to strong arm the U.K. and Dutch governments to back down on their demands. Notice how BA and KLM are virtually shut down?

My partner and I are headed to KEF from SEA in just over 2 weeks and are now even more excited about going there!

tomh009

The way the winds are changing, it's hard to predict which airports will or will not be open 24-48 hours from now.

In the meantime, if you want to see details about engine damage caused by the volcanic ash:
http://www.flightglobal.com/articles...-volcanic.html

will5404

Looking at availability, now ex-YYZ there's nothing for a week at least. Out west best I could see was a flight out of YYC or YEG next Saturday. Once another few days are canceled, my 2 week European vacation will probably be a same day MR.

Stranger

But surely they blew this volcano on purpose?

Stranger

So far it looks to me more like, the way the winds are *NOT* changing, this could keep going on for a week or more.

And to continue, it's hard to predict whether there will be any airport that remains open.

A change of winds is precisely what the airlines need. And/or Iceland and their volcano to start behaving for a change.

Stranger

I suspect this may be misleading. Associated with the way AC is dealing with the crisis.

Looking at rebooking, I have been checking. In the early hours in the morning, and up to about 8:30 am YYC time, when checking availability on aircanada.com, only seats showing up were J. Suddenly around 8:30 this morning all J seats disappeared on a bunch of flights, but a bunch of (expensively priced) Y seats showed up. Incidentally, in both cases, the web page would show the class of service as undefined. Which is not normal.

Next, I get a phone call offering me a J seat on one of these flights on Sunday. So, my impression is that they are keeping seats, not offering them for sale, to keep them available for rebooking. Not necessarily a bad idea.

Another tidbit: there is now a new field in your reservation file to store an additional phone number with mention "FOR-XTRA**PREFERRED."

Makes you feel good, doesn't it?

Stranger

Perfect timing. Right when it's dirt cheap.

Of course, assuming the wind does not switch direction and sends the ashes toward Iceland for a change.

But yes, my previous comment was, I thought obviously, tongue in cheek. No real argument there. Just funny how this tiny country ended up on the map, again though.

Jagboi

What does AC850 look like for the 22nd? Completely full?

will5404

J9 C9 D9 Z9 Y0 B0 M0 U0 H0 Q0 V0 W0 S0 L0 K0 N0 G0 P0 T0 R9

Can be checked here

YVR Cockroach

You did make me go back and check the fares. Remarkably they're up $100 for the cheapest fares when I bought (which very briefly dipped $50).


Odds are good for TATL to/from KEF as prevailing winds are eastbound (hence the longer flights westbound). As a point of history, the allies knew the weather for Normandy in advance of the 1944 invasion because of Keflavik and ships along the N. Atlantic. German observation presence (mainly U-boats) was much more limited.

Stranger

Latest update:

"Following the latest information from the MET Office, NATS advises that restrictions across UK controlled airspace have been extended until at least 1900 (UK Time) today Saturday 17 April and that restrictions to Scottish and Manchester airspace have been re-applied until the same time.

Current forecasts show that the situation is worsening throughout Saturday. We are continuing to look for windows of opportunity to handle individual flights in UK controlled airspace."