Chaos caused by Icelandic volcano is "only the beginning"

Iceland's president urged airlines to start planning for further volcanic eruptions as flights resumed to and from UK airports this week.

Olafur Grimsson said the six days of flight disruption caused by the eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano were the beginning of an experience which will be repeated through the 21st century.

Scientists are concerned that Katla, another larger volcano only eight miles from Eyjafjallajokull will erupt within the next few weeks, spewing out more magma.

Mr Grimsson said: "There are forces of nature at work in Iceland which can create a long period of extraordinary damage, following a series of test flights conducted last weekend, airlines and flight engineers now believe that modern engines are able to fly through low levels of volcanic dust without any risk to normal operations."

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in the UK gave airlines the go ahead to resume flights on Tuesday evening with the proviso that engines must be examined for volcanic dust and damage after each flight.

It is thought that dust from the volcano might cause more wear and tear on the engines and lead to higher fuel consumption but experts say it poses no risk to flight safety.

The CAA will continue to monitor the situation with tests both in the air and on the ground.

Digg    Reddit    Facebook    Tweet This