So they're sending in the Navy.

[Sidge]

Maybe I'm just rather cycnical but I don't really see why they're sending the Navy ships in to help at this stage.

It looks like flying will start again tomorrow, and warships aren't exactly cross channel ferries or cruise ships when it comes to accommodating hundreds of civilians with their luggage.

Another way for the Government to attempt to score some Brown-ie points (geddit? ) by looking as if they're doing something to relieve the crisis when they're not actually doing much at all, and what they are doing is too little too late?

Not that I'm too sure what they should be doing; is it a Government's responsibility to get people back home to the UK, or should it be up to the airlines and travel industry?

Not up on naval slang there (although I know what keel-hauled is) and I think that's a great idea.

They should make sure that all passengers have to participate in mandatory PT as well. At least half of the whingers will be the same sort of people who complain about how much Defence costs and how it's awful that service families get "free" accomodation and pay no income tax.

I vote they bloody well swim home.

Kissing the gunners daughter is being laid over a cannon (or missile launcher these days I suppose) and thrashed. Punishment for midshipmen in days gone by.

I know people need to get back, but no-one's died - they aren't having to be evacuated in case of war/pestilence or disease. If the airspace is shut then the hotels are presumably happy to have guests staying on, as no new ones can get in, so what is the problem? Would there be all this fuss if there was a Europe wide Air Traffic controllers strike?

Dh preparing for a meeting with people from the Ukraine. he wasn't sure whether to bother or not as it's a waste of time if they can't get here!

Belgium is open. From Belgocontrol just now:

The State Secretary for Mobility has decided to reopen the Belgian airspace on 20 April, 8.00 am local time. In the morning 50% of the airspace capacity will be used.

Belgocontrol will keep the Belgian Civil Aviation Authority informed in to order to evaluate the situation on the basis of the airlines' reports on the state of the Belgian airspace pollution caused by the volcanic ash cloud spreading from the Icelandic volcano.

There are some flights now taking off in Scotland (internal only just now, I believe) but there's more ash headed our way.

We're heading down to London this weekend (on a train - thankfully) but my husband is rather sceptical about his chances of making a NATO course in Munich later this month.

If it relocates to Brussels, then yell, and I'll put him up if he needs it.

I think it's a good thing that the gov are trying to help.

It's OK for those on package holidays who have to be given food and accomodation but what about all the others who are travelling independently. Not everyone can stay with family or has a business expense account.

Self employed people and contractors dont get paid holidays. Many won't be able to afford not to work for a few weeks.

Some of it's got to be point scoring from the Navy. There's a big battle going on right now for military funding and the Navy will be very keen to say "see, aren't aircraft carriers great! Imagine what we could do if we had proper ones! You'll let us have those two new ones now won't you?"

Scary teacher - no one has died but I know of one specialist neurosurgical consultant who is stuck in La Gomera (? sp) whose theatre lists have had to be cancelled.

Hardly point scoring from the RN - they go where they are told, like Afghanistan, and Ark Royal, Albion and Ocean are NOT aircraft carriers.

However, a letter in the Telegraph today made the point that there is a need for a mobile runway and that would be an aircraft carrier then.

The new carriers are named and the steel has been cut. I think it would cost far too much to not make them now, plus the knock on effect on GB's constituency which includes Rosyth dockyard if they were to be pulled.

Yes, I appreciate that hospital lists have been cancelled, but all the coverage about 'heroic' journeys home etc are a little silly; especially when there are spaces available on ferries etc but no-one as Ski and I have been pointing out can think half an hour further than Calais.

The airspace would not have been closed unnecessarily and it is better to be safe than dead surely.

Ark Royal is as close to an Aircraft Carrier as the Navy have been allowed to go since the 70s, but no it's not a "proper" one they even had to call it a "through deck anti-submarine cruiser" rather than a carrier to get the things built. While they will go where they are told they're not at all above point scoring and assigning assets and resources to help with that.

The new Carriers are far from secure and even the future of the aircraft that the Navy want to put on them is somewhat dubious on both a technical front and with the RAF doing it's best to kill the whole thing.

I'm sorry but La Gomera is not the Galapagos. You'd have thought a brain surgeon could've figured out a way home.

Jac - perhaps those people should've pulled their fingers out last week then - there's a story on mn of a lady who made it back from geneva for under 100 quid. How much are 5* hotels a NIGHT these days?

Article in the Daily Mail today about a family "stranded" in Barbados after their 20k Easter holiday. My heart bleeds - if they can't find a bit of cash...

But may of them weren't due to return home till the weekend. How could they have pulled there finger out?

It's a shame they weren't able to read weather reports or analyse the data available freely to one and all.

Independent travellers should have far more wits about them than your "average" package-holidaymaker, so I'm afraid I fail to see your point.

watching the news last night...the returning passengers,the older ones,all looked delighted with their little adventure.....prob talk about it for months!!

Scary - thanks a lot. I'll yell if I need to.

Badgers - I am well aware of what this Ark Royal is ta. My Dad served on the old one. It is a through deck cruiser, though in our part of the Navy we prefer target.

Albion was over here already as dh was on board in Antwerp on Friday, therefore a quick boogie down the coast doesn't hurt. What they will NOT be doing is reassigning assets from the South Atlantic or the West Indies or the Gulf for instance to come and rescue people from Calais.

We have sold the family silver in the RN to get those Carriers, and I can't see them being cancelled now. That was the whole point of them being named early. The RAF can't kill them - they have too much to worry about with the number of redundancies being mooted for them.

Don't see what's wrong with the F35, all the reports look good so far.

When I go on holiday I dont wear a watch read newspapers or watch tv. The last thing I would be doing is reading weather reports or analysing data!

No problem jcscot.

Jac - you must be one of those people who goes camping in the Galapagos then. You'd have thought someone at their hotel might've mentioned the word "volcano" or "aeroplane" at some point over the last week.

Personally I think it's more than just redundancies the RAF has to worry about. But that's off topic.

Is it really the role of government to rescue stranded holidaymakers? I'm really not convinced. If I were stuck somewhere I'd be upset, frustrated etc but I wouldn't automatically expect the govt to bail me out.

It's this sort of thing that makes me wonder if David Cameron has a point.

I was amazed to read on the ticker on BBC News that a Naval ship is going to northern Spain to pick up 3 rifles

Did get the whole story later

Was the R in capitals though? 3 rifles, being different to 3 Rifles iyswim.

Ticker is in BLOCK CAPITALS

i'm uncomfortable with the ferries being told they can relax the rules with regard to how many passengers they can now carry in order to get people moved around the world!!

the safety measures were there for a reason riginally....now they are relaxing them??