Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland

Abstract

The ash cloud from the Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland caused a significant impact on aviation in April and May 2010. In just the period between April 14 and 21, more than 100,000 flights were cancelled, with more than $1.7 billion in lost revenues for airlines and more than 10 million stranded passengers. The magnitude of the impact was caused by the extent of the ash cloud coupled with the duration of the event and the consequent volcanic ash procedures in effect. This event provided significant insight into the handling of the volcanic ash crisis and stirred aviation regulators and other aviation organizations all over the world into action. The unfolding of events is presented; an overview of the lessons learned–such as the need for determination of hazardous ash concentration levels, improvement of forecast validation, and amelioration of information exchange–is given.

A GIS-based tool to support air traffic management during explosive volcanic eruptions

“…5 shows forecasted concentration contours for different thresholds (0.02, 0.2 and 2 mg/m 3 ) and FLs (FL050, FL250 and FL400) after 24, 48 and 72 hours from the eruption onset. The concentration values of 0.2 and 2 mg/m 3 correspond to the thresholds proposed for restricted operations and no-fly area during the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption in Europe (Bolić and Sivčev, 2011), while for the zero tolerance criterion, applied worldwide before the 2010 events (ICAO, 2007). We assume the value of 0.02 mg/m 3 .…”

“…In turn, the hazard posed by ash fallout on airports has been described and characterized since the early 1990s (Casadevall, 1993;Guffanti et al, 2008). However, the systemic impact of airspace contamination on a dense air traffic network was underestimated until the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption in Iceland (Bolić and Sivčev, 2011), which caused the largest aviation breakdown since the World War II (Oxford Economics, 2010;Bolić and Sivčev, 2011). Civil aviation management during ash-producing volcanic eruptions is complex and involves multiple aspects, disciplines and actors, from scientists to civil aviation authorities and stakeholders dealing with decisionmaking both at short-term (emergency management; shortly before and during disruption) and long-term (territorial and strategic planning).…”

“….a need for improved information exchange regarding the volcanic ash impact on daily operations is noted by the intended users of the information.'' (Bolić and Sivčev, 2011). One of the few existing tools combining the ash dispersal forecast and air traffic data is EVITA prototype (European crisis Visualization Interactive Tool for ATFCM) that was developed as a response to cited airlines' requirement.…”

An EARLINET Early Warning System for atmospheric aerosol aviation hazards

“…The lessons learned from the Eyjafjallajökull crisis emphasized the vulnerability of air transportation to natural hazards (Bolic and Sivcev, 2011). Volcanic ash plumes as well as desert dust outbreaks present an imminent threat to aviation as they lead, among others, to poor visibility with considerable consequences to flight operations (Bolic and Sivcev, 2011;Middleton, 2017). Aircraft that do fly in volcanic/desert dust conditions can have a variety of damages from scouring of surfaces to engine failure (Eliasson et al, 2016).…”

Modelling the air transport with complex networks: A short review

“…In 2008 this industry generated 32 million jobs worldwide, of which 5.5 of them were direct, and contributed with USD 408 billion to the global gross product [1]. On the other hand, its vulnerability and the consequences for citizens' mobility clearly appear when a strike or the eruption of a volcano interrupt the normal behavior of the system [2,3].…”