Storm Ashley. Where is she?

[maldivemoment]

We’re west coast of Scotland so very exposed.
Husband planned to make a trip to B&Q to collect supplies for current building work. I talked him out of it as didn’t think it wise to drive with items on roof of car during a storm. Forecast predicted wind gusts of 40mph from 4am.

I’ve been awake on and off since then and so far, no gusts!

Husband now making frantic dash to B&Q!

Has the wind picked up for anyone else yet?

There are over 53k customers of ESB in Ireland without power at the moment. It’s wild out there.

Garden is taking a battering, and the wind is howling here.
Got the torches and candles handy, just in case.

Our garage roof has just come off - half of it is currently in next doors garden!

Our glass recycling bin has just blown over - broken glass all over the driveway. Too dark to see properly to sweep it up. Urgh.

Lights have been flickering on and off for
the last couple hours but no power cut yet. DH has to go out to collect DC from a youth event in about half an hour and driving over country roads so keeping a close eye on Twitter for news of fallen trees.

Interesting to hear Dub is bad - DD is at college in Dub and is out at a friends’ tonight so will be getting the bus home later - hope they are running ok. Will be interesting to see how it dies down overnight - her college are pretty quick to cancel classes if weather is bad.

Bloody tornado where I am in North Wales, it's a windy town anyway but tonight is ridiculous. Watching all the neighbours bins careen off down the street like a really shit grand national, the shed roof is hanging on by a thread, and my husband got assaulted by an errant wreath that had escaped someone's door on his way out with the dogs.

(Obviously I realise this is nothing compared to the actual tornado destruction in the States, and my heart goes out to anyone who has actually been impacted by those, I'm simply doing my British duty of moaning about our quite boring weather)

I was looking at Flight Radar a couple of hours ago and there were loads of flights looping again and again, trying (failing) to land at Dublin. Baffling that so many flights from England and Scotland were still bothering to take off, some hours later than scheduled.

ETA I’m in Cambridgeshire and it’s been fine here!

I'm surprised more flights haven't been cancelled, it's seriously wild out there.

Flights in Belfast have been landing (with difficulty - but landing all the same) but then passengers couldn’t get off the plane because they couldn’t attach the steps. One plane has taken off again to return to London with the bags still on board as they couldn’t safely get them off! Can’t figure out how a plane can land and take off but they can’t unload bags.

Flight U2623 from London to Inverness seems to be heading back to London! Idk why it even left Gatwick in the first place knowing the Highlands is in amber warning!

fr24.com/EZY137Q/37a1c6b0

@FerminRomeroDeTorres

Can’t figure out how a plane can land and take off but they can’t unload bags.

I can…I’ve had it happen.

Main thing that clobbers take-off and landings is how much crosswind you have, not the total wind…so for example you might be able to take off/land with a wind of 60 knots as long as it’s pretty much aligned with the runway.

However that wind speed, that 60 knots, might be above the limit for operating the aircraft doors (and the limit can differ passenger v cargo doors)….so having got people to destination you can’t open the holds.

What's worse than not getting to Inverness and returning to Gatwick? Diverting to Luton!

EasyJet’s Bristol to Belfast earlier this evening, squawked and diverted to Nottingham (EMA). Crazy, at least going back to where you started makes sense!

The airlines don’t look at Amber/yellow warnings, that’s for the general public.

TBH the Inverness airport forecast and their last reported weather as available to the public isn’t actually that extreme, it’s gusty strong wind but almost aligned with the main runway so based on that I can understand why the flight set off, quite what has changed and prompted the turn back don’t know.

(edit to add: wonder if it’s turbulence???)

Manchester to Dublin going around for a second landing attempt.

www.flightradar24.com/RYR1EP/37a19d26

Bastard windy on the NW coast. I can hardly hear the TV it's so loud.

Not storm related but a USAF plane is about to enter Israeli airspace. (I was checking the most followed flights)

I'm on the NW coast too and it really is loud. Hope it calms down a bit before the high tide in the early hours as we're on a flood alert warning.

I’m on the east coat of Scotland and it was here last night and seems to be back again just now

U2851 just landed into Inverness, maybe the earlier flight that diverted just got unlucky with weather/turbulence and didn’t have fuel for another go.

There's a Manchester-Leeds on its third go-around -its circling is going to be comparable with the actual journey distance if not more. Runway isn't in line with the wind.

Manchester and Leeds airports are 58 miles apart. I am surprised there are flights between the two. I guess if you are doing a long haul out of Manchester you light tag on the Leeds flight.

Ah yes, but if (unlikely) Luton was the flight’s declared alternate (i.e. that is where the company wanted the flight to go if it couldn’t land at INV) then, given the distances, it might well have been a case of them having enough fuel for one go at Inverness and then straight off to Luton.

A closer alternate (e.g. Edinburgh, Newcastle) is more perhaps likely and would have given them more flex at Inverness but sometimes these decisions are sometimes made with commercial interests, not just safety, in mind.

All sorts of reason and of course ultimately who knows what went on?