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?

I'm surprised that flight exists too, and it's going around again.

I have flown from both Leeds and Manchester many many times and I have never seen a flight going between the 2

I think that’s an attempt to reposition an aircraft that was diverted earlier and landed at MAN instead of LBA.

edit: Yep, Poznań Leeds, diverted to MAN earlier and not looking very good now…LBA is notorious for being a difficult place to get into in strong westerlies due to the main runway direction (SE/NW).

An Emirates plane flew from Manchester to Birmingham earlier.

I think that’s an attempt to reposition an aircraft that was diverted earlier and landed at MAN instead of LBA.

Ah, that might be it.

It's changed course and gaining height. Headed somewhere else.

I just came on to suggest it might be from an earlier diversion.

Do you reckon it's going back to Manchester?

No…

In their defence they go to a lot of places with shortish runways and they very much adhere to Mr Boeing’s universal advice for all their aircraft which is not to faff around trying for a gentle landing, especially on limiting runways.

The public love the idea of silky smooth touchdowns and think that’s what it’s all about but it drives the people who do the pilot training and checking mad.

Alexa telling me winds here in Yorkshire near Leeds I live on a hill exposed is 61 km an hour. I can hear the wind outside

Might (don’t know) well be an example of what I said upthread about commercial decisions playing a role in diversions…That aircraft is Polish based (SP registration).

I wonder if the brief to the crew at MAN was if they couldn’t get into LBA they were to take the aircraft home so that it’s in the correct place to operate it’s first scheduled sector tomorrow morning?

Crikey 😱

At least she seems to be content with just playing knock and run, here (rattly door knocker), though our water pressure went down for a bit when I was cooking tea, presumably related to a power cut a few miles away. It's the scandi storms that seem to do the most damage here in the north east.

You've probably realised now that this morning's horizontal sogginess was just a spin off from the main event, here!

A couple of other flights have just landed at LBA first time, approaching from the south rather than the north.

It’s a pure crosswind there ATM, 25 knots gusting to 43 knots so the runway direction probably doesn’t make much difference, if you were flying an approach you’d just be hoping to arrive in a gap between the gusts.

The Ryanair flight was probably just unlucky.

My BIL's flight from Glasgow to Dublin was cancelled.

You’re right there are such limits and they can come into play but without knowing the 737s numbers it’s hard to judge.

As a general point If they were not carrying passengers/bags the.that frees up weight, gives an extra margin so it’s possible they could for example arrive at LBA at just below maximum landing weight, shoot x number of approaches hoping to land and still have enough fuel to divert across Europe to wherever they end up,

90 mph recorded at a weather station near us a few mins ago. Hopefully this is the peak.

I have seen it much windier then this up on the hills where I live it doesn’t seem that bad yes it’s rattling my flat but I have seen worse

So Poznań Leeds, diverted to MAN earlier, then tried LBA again and now heading back to Poland presumably...

Do you reckon the passengers got off in Manchester and are being bussed to LBA? Because if not that is one hell of a day. Diverted and stuck on the ground, then a few go rounds at LBA and then fly back to where you came from.

Given the weather and the likelihood of not getting into LBA surely the passengers got off in Manchester?!?

I’m guessing busses to LBA to make the possibility of returning the aircraft to Poland having had a go at LBA a reasonable option.

I see the Leeds departures board is showing the 2120 Krakow cancelled so I wonder if that is where this aircraft is going to end up (in position for the next sector)?

Edit: Looks like it’s actually tracking more towards Poznan…given that where it left from earlier and it’s possibly where the crew is based that’s just as valid an option.

I can't imagine they wouldn't have got the passengers off once they were safe on the ground in Manchester.
It looks like they're more than half way back towards Poznań now.