FLYING THE ASHY SKIES

"A senior Western diplomat says several NATO F-16 fighters suffered engine damage after flying through the volcanic ash cloud covering large parts of Europe.

The official declined to provide more details on the military flights, except to say that glasslike deposits were found inside the planes' engines after they patroled over European airspace.

Last week, two Finnish Air Force F-18 fighter-bombers suffered similar damage while flying through the ash plume that has paralyzed air traffic over much of Europe. Both landed safely, but their jet engines will require expensive overhauls.

Volcanic ash tends to stick to a jet engine's interior parts, such as the turbines, where it melts to form a glassy coating. This restricts air flow and heats up the engine, leading to engine failure."
AP

And yet, at the airlines, where customer safety is always placed ahead of profit...

"A number of European carriers have run test flights which they say have identified no problems operating in areas closed by the authories. British Airways said one of its planes encountered "perfect" conditions between Heathrow and Cardiff airport.

...Authorities were also criticised for imposing rules which were based on theory rather than practical evidence.

Giovanni Bisignani, director-general, the International Air Transport Association, the airlines' trade body was scathing about the European response to the ash cloud.
"This is a European embarrassment and it's a European mess,” he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.

“It took five days to organise a conference call with the ministers of transport. Europeans are still using a system that's based on a theoretical model, instead of taking a decision based on facts and risk assessment.

"This decision (to close airspace) has to be based on facts and supported by risk assessment. We need to replace this blanket approach with a practical approach."
Telegraph

Keep this in mind next time you fly. Safety is secondary to profit. They do pretty well most of the time but some carriers in Europe are showing their true colors.