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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to be really irritated by interviewees on the news moaning about flight disruption?

110 replies

kitcat1977 · 15/04/2010 18:38

It's not fair because ...

'... We're supposed to be going on holiday without the children for the first time.'

'... It's my birthday.'

'...I was supposed to be meeting Michelle Obama.'

OK, only half listening so probably misquoted, but that seemed to be the general jist.

So farking what? It's a volcanic cloud, whaddayawanna do about it?!!

OP posts:

clam · 15/04/2010 19:14

Unless the airlines have been keeping people in the dark about what's going on and why all flights were cancelled. Some of those people on the news seemed to have no idea why they were hanging about.

StephysFamous · 15/04/2010 19:20

I had a good giggle at a guy on STV news earlier when he said, "I don't understand why they cancelled the flights! There's no ash on ground level!"
Yeah, 'cause planes fly at ground level mate.
What a twat!

deaddei · 15/04/2010 19:23

I would be throwing things at dh if we were affected.
My brother is stuck in Portugal.

scottishmummy · 15/04/2010 19:24

love catriona shearer,she was good on off the ball recently and that you tube clip of her rummaging up and down her dress (when she thought she was offline) for the mike is funny

brook1 · 15/04/2010 19:31

YABU, many people have saved up for ages for their holidays and have booked time off work. They have every right to be disappointed. And if I was supposed to be travelling then I would be pretty peed off too. Am sure they all realise that its no-ones fault. And the newspeople are just trying to cover a story on the people that it has affected. The ones that were travelling for interesting reasons (weddings etc) are bound to get coverage.

Have some empathy for these people, and hope that it never happens to you.

MintHumbug · 15/04/2010 19:37

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

frasersmummy · 15/04/2010 19:48

The cameramen going up to people and saying look upset for the telly I reckon

I am just outside Glasgow and the seaplane flies right over our house ...

I was shocked to see it flying back and forward today

makes me wonder if the planes could have flown at lower altitudes

fiveisanawfullybignumber · 15/04/2010 19:55

PMSL @ a contingency plan. Maybe the monster raving loony party could devise something useful.
If it was me, I'd be a bit upset, but relieved that the airlines aren't willing to take risks with our lives. As my DM says, better to get their late than dead on time!

We should just be grateful that it's a smallish eruption in Iceland and not a bigger volcano like the one at yellowstone park in USA. If that goes big time (a few small multiple eruptions could destabilise the whole caldera, miles across), the ash cloud could be big enough to circle the globe and block out our sun for months, new ice age stuff. (DS1) 17, is a geology student, he's put the fear of God into me about that one!

Xenia · 15/04/2010 20:11

There's some useful technical explanations at www.pprune.org/rotorheads/412150-helicopters-volcanic-ash.html

wannaBe · 15/04/2010 20:45

They're saying now that flights to be suspended until at least 13:00 tomorrow afternoon.

They can't fly at lower altitudes because there isn't enough air space. Different altitudes are reserved for different aircraft, so pilots have to have permission even to descend for landing and are told the altitude they have to fly at.

sophiaverloren · 15/04/2010 20:54

Thing is, knowing the news about when the flights are delayed until are no flipping good because by now all bookings are up the swanee (sp?) and so if your flight was today, you could be delayed for days...
Of course it's not the airlines fault and the fact is there's no one directly to blame, but am I allowed to be disappointed that I am not going to see my little boy on Saturday after a week away and we'd so looked forward to it?
Not big in the scheme of things, I grant you. Not once in a lifetime. Not even something I've saved for. Just a business trip which will now eat up my weekend, however beautiful the city is I've been stranded in.
God, I would have killed for this opportunity before kids! Now I just want to get home.

badkitty · 15/04/2010 20:54

YANBU, yes it is disappointing but daft to moan about the airlines. I am supposed to be flying tomorrow for a wkend in Spain, yes it is disappointing and I had been looking forward to it etc - but come on, its a massive volcanic eruption, I think its actually quite exciting (but then I am a bit of a secret geek...)

edwardcullensotherwoman · 15/04/2010 20:56

YANBU really, obviously pople are disappointed - I certainly would be annoyed if I had to start/end my holiday with hours of delay. BUT, it's not something anyone could control, and as airlines have said the ash particles can damage the planes' engines - which means he plane will crash. No-one wants that, do they?

Another thing I found a bit was people saying they've been sitting around for 10 hours or whatever not knowing what's happening. It's all over the news! Buy a paper, get on the internet, whatever. There's plenty of these facilities in airports, so go find out for yourself! I know there isn;t exact details about flights, but a rough idea of how long suspensions will last at least.

Xenia · 15/04/2010 22:09

It isn't always that easy to find out. I was at belfast air port a few weeks ago at 8.30pm and they said no flights tonight now (and I had an engagement early the next morning I had to be atand I wanted an hour in the house between 9 and 10 before it was too late) but anyway but they just didn't say what was going on. They said because of radar faults there were no flights and none from Scotland and none from manchester either. But the people at the air port didn't say a thing so I went on line and even then I couldn't find a single thing about this radar problem and then in about another hour the flights were all back on. Although I think there's more about this current problem on line and see my link above about technical issues and insruance issues too about not flying if the dust would destroy the engines etc.

EdgeofReason · 15/04/2010 22:14

YANBU - I would be gutted but can't imagine spending a night in an airport.
(My colleague due to travel to scotland from London today - on his birthday - suggested his wife may have lit candles too early and caused it all...)

Jackstini · 15/04/2010 22:36

MintHumbug - I am one of those people who was due to fly on business!
Would not blame anyone but yes it is still annoying when you have been working so hard to get a meeting and it is whipped away from under your nose.
Just counting myself lucky it was not a dying relative visit/honeymoon etc..

Jackstini · 15/04/2010 22:37

And thankful that I had only got 1 hour into a 5 hour hourney to the airport before I found out!!

sarah293 · 16/04/2010 07:48

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

MilkNoSugarPlease · 16/04/2010 07:54

YANBU!! Yes sure it's a PITA, but so is the plane crashing due to the ash!

skihorse · 16/04/2010 07:59

YANBU. Let 'em fly.

Any thoughts about a contingency plan? I was thinking of some sort of digger with a spiral shaped nose (Running Man/Bond ??) which burrows in to the earth 5 miles deep and then pops up at the holiday destination.

gemmummy · 16/04/2010 08:13

I'm an air traffic controller and I was sent home early from work today, told not to come in today....even the military are affected by this, spare a thought for all the poor people stuck in Afghanistan et al that are trying to get home too....I bet they're well miffed their flights are cancelled.

sophiaverloren · 16/04/2010 08:14

Riven - I had the bright idea about trains too...not a chance, all fully booked going north. So it sounds like people ARE going by train, just not me yet.
Am currently rebooked on a flight going a circuituous route tomorrow, although looking at the news I am not pinning my hopes too high.
I suppose there are worse places to be forced to do a bit of clothes shopping than Italy!!

smokinaces · 16/04/2010 08:18

My neighbour was due back early hours of this morning - guessing she is stuck away abroad on her holidays. Bit worrying for her, as she left her daughters at home - one is 18 and been fine so will pop round and just see if she needs any cash/food, but the other is only 15 and was staying with friends so not sure whether she'll just stay longer or come back to the house to stay with the 18yo. She's a teacher and due back at school Monday too - so its going to have longer term distruption than just flights as I'm sure she's not the only one.

sarah293 · 16/04/2010 08:19

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

skihorse · 16/04/2010 08:20

There's more than one way to cross a channel you know. Off the top of my head I can think of at least 4 routes from France to England, one from France to Eire, two from Belgium to England and one from The Netherlands to England. Failing that I'm setting up a stall in Calais selling rubber dinghys.

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