The following is excerpted from today’s edition of “The Journal of Commerce”.
Europe’s airline industry lurched back to life Wednesday as carriers put planes back into the air after being grounded for nearly a week by a volcanic ash plume from Iceland. Most airports across Europe were open April 21.
But airlines warned it will take weeks to clear up several thousand metric tons of cargo and well over 100,000 passengers stranded at airports around the world.
Eurocontrol, the European air traffic agency, said it expects 21,000 flights to take off Wednesday, 75 percent of the 28,000 that would normally be scheduled.
British Airways expected to operate 70 percent of its schedule, and cargo airlines began to reopen air express hubs.
But FedEx Express said it would take days to clear out its backlog and had restrictions on shipments needing special handling.
Manufacturers depending on air shipments were still struggling after a week with deliveries coming in only fits and starts.
Airbus said Tuesday it was facing parts shortages that could slow down its aircraft production line. And some European auto plants warned of layoffs and factory shutdowns because needed car parts had run out.
The majority of continental European airports, including the top three cargo hubs, Frankfurt, Paris Charles de Gaulle and Amsterdam, opened early on Tuesday April 20 as the ash cloud dispersed with only UK airspace remaining a no-fly zone.
The UK eventually opened its airports, including London Heathrow, Europe’s fourth largest cargo airport, late Tuesday night following protests from airlines that it was applying stricter safety rules than European authorities….
With some 20 British Airways long haul aircraft heading toward London Heathrow and Gatwick airports, the Civil Aviation Authority lifted the ban on flights in UK airspace.
The International Air Transport Association estimated the flight bans imposed on April 15 had cost airlines more than $1.7 billion by April 20.
