Chili Palmer

If Mt. Redoudt blows her top how will it affect flights into/out of Anchorage?

I frequently travel to Anchorage for work and I currently have flights booked (for the wife and I) for Feb 5 (tomorrow) and return Feb 9 (Monday). I've considered cancelling and waiting until a later date?

Your thoughts...

wolfie_cr

The volcanic ash for sure affects the engines etc

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Airways_Flight_9

wb8iny

I heading through ANC to Fairbanks on Sunday, and returning on Friday the 13th. I'm more worried about the return date

But, as Jimmy Buffet sings:

Well let me hear ya now
I don't know
I don't know
I don't know where I'm a gonna go
When the volcano blow

Ground she's movin' under me
Got ya tidal waves out on the sea
Sulphur smoke up in the sky
Pretty soon we learn to fly

If it happens, it happens!

clarence5ybr

Airlines are well aware of how ash can affect their planes, and the potential liability they face in the event of an incident.

Given that the US Geological Survey's Alaska Volcano Observatory is keeping a very close eye on this, I'm sure the airlines are keeping themselves well informed, and will cancel/divert flights as needed.

If you cancel/reschedule now, you'll be on the hook for change fees. If Redoubt blows, I assume the airlines will waive any change fees.

If it were me, I'd keep my bookings.

Ocn Vw 1K

Chili Palmer, welcome to FlyerTalk. Let me move this to our Travel->Alaska forum for further discussion. Ocn Vw 1K, Moderator, TravelBuzz.

alphaeagle

Or the the more closely related KLM flight 867. Same volcano, 20 years ago. It does have a history of downing airplanes Airlines have gotten much better at avoiding Ash nowadays, especially Alaska Airlines. They probably have the most experience. About 5 months ago there was another eruption in the Aleutians that caused many canceled flights between Alaska and the lower 48.

Here is the Alaska Volcano Observatory's website. If it does erupt, expect cancellations. There is no way to predict that it when/if it will, though. Could be hours, days, weeks... or never.

jackal

We've been hearing about the imminent eruption of Redoubt for at least two weeks now, and if anything, seismic activity/melting snow/steam venting has subsided in the last couple of days. As alphaeagle said, it could be days or weeks--or even months or years--before the eruption happens.

Alaska is very proactive about canceling flights if volcanic ash proves a threat. In fact, their flights were canceled in 2006 when Augustine erupted while UA (whom I was booked on) continued to fly. (I was in BOS when it happened, and I remember having to explain to the ICC agent what a volcano was and that other airlines were canceling their flights before she was able to look up whether my flights home were canceled... )

The ash cloud is only dangerous to flights to Anchorage if the prevailing winds are from the southwest (which, unfortunately, they usually are). You can see the current (as in if-the-volcano-erupts-now) ash cloud dispersion model here. And believe me--if there is any chance of it heading this way, AS WLL be canceling/diverting/rerouting flights and you will be perfectly safe.

As others have said, don't cancel your trip based on this news. The only exception might be if it would cause hardship for you to potentially be stuck in ANC for an extra few days if the volcano indeed erupts and ANC receives some ash fall.

riftime

Here's another interesting web site:

http://vaac.arh.noaa.gov/

It's part of the National Weather Service Alaska Aviation Weather Unit, and among other things, issues aviation advisories regarding the ash cloud.

riftime

Chili Palmer

Thanks for all the responses. For the reason listed below I did end up cancelling the trip. If it were just me I would've gone but my better half was going with and she's the only person in her department right now and it would not have been good if she couldn't get home on time. We also have 3 kids so child care would've been an issue also.

It was kind of a wierd setup via work. I rarely fly Delta anymore and I had just enough points for this trip so I talked my boss into paying for my wife's expenses (primarily food) if I use my points to get me there. Because of this I didn't want to only cancel her portion of the trip (because I wouldn't have had enought points to do it again); so I cancelled the whole thing and will be rebooking a trip for me only in the next couple of weeks and then my wife and I will be going there later...

Thanks again for the replies...^

monitor

IIRC, a couple of FTers were caught at SEA after the last SEA DO in August and drank the BoardRoom and then the President's Club dry waiting for AS to tell them whether the airline thought it would be able to fly up to ANC after that eruption.

Nothing went that night and they were forced to go back to the scene of the SEA Do and take it into overtime.

jackal

Ah, yes, the cult van story.

Methinks one of the two said FT members didn't remember much about that night...