Volcanic Glass

I hope they get home soon. Good luck to them.
Laura is still in Accra and no end in sight yet. They tried to adjust their flight but couldn't so still in a holding pattern. Like I said, I still think she is better of in Accra until she knows she can get out of Amsterdamn once plane gets her there from Accra. At least now, she has hotel, there it will be the floor.
 
In 1783, Ben Franklin went to France - bad timing, geologically speaking. An Iceland volcano went boom. Ben later wrote, that due to the suspended ash, it was "a year without a summer."

Could be more than air traffic, devastation of Icelands agricultural (grazing) economy and health risk in Iceland and Europe for humans with pre-existing breathing problems - might be a cold summer in Europe, with resulting economic and comfort levels dropping - if the volcano continues erupting.

Difficult to predict length of this eruption - geo types are working on it, but no published results yet.
 
Kids finally got a train to Paris today -- plan drive to Madrid, plane to Costa Rica, plane to Houston and maybe they will see their kids on April 23 -- the twins will be 8 that day.

No telling when the Houston real estate will close but rate lock ends Saturday!

Told him they should have bought a 50' sail boat and headed around the world last year.

Bill Uffelman
Las Vegas NV
 
Bill -
Sure glad they found a way back home - and in time for the birthday party. Seismic activity is continuing at a high, and continuing, rate at the site of the volcano so no obvious sign of abating yet.
 
Well, she is still in Accra, hoping for tomorrow now. I am thinking it might happen. She has been stuck since last Thursday so if the plane goes she has priority or so they say.....lets see.
 
FWIW son and his wife emailed at 1AM PDT (10 AM Paris I think) they were boarding a flight in Paris for Houston - - stated regret that they didn't get to sail across the Channel or drive through the Pyrenees or get Central American passport stamps. At 4:30 PM (1:30 AM tomorrow Paris) emailed that they had made it to Houston.

Not sure where they went for 15.5 hours but at least they are in the US, can close on the new house and get the twins and their brother to Houston in time for the twins 8th birthday on Friday.

Platinum AMEX and top notch corporate travel person are worth their weight I guess -- wonder how many cancelled ticket penalties they will have incurred on this adventure?

I think he needs a new boat to relax on 8>))

Bill Uffelman
Las Vegas NV
 
Glad everything worked out for your kids.
I also have good news, or at least I think. Laura was supposed to board a flight to Accra tonight and just waiting for website update to see if she made it out. Now she just has to get out of Amsterdam tomorrow into Seattle and it will be smooth sailing after that.
Finally!
 
I wish her well.

All of this makes me think of flying military standby in the 1960s on military and civilian aircraft -- hurry up an wait and what do you mean a 6 stop flight from SFO to PHL?

Bill Uffelman
Las Vegas NV
 
I have noted this point on some pilot chat groups... The ash is suspended high up and jet engines which have to fly high to reduce fuel burn and which inhale massive amounts of air are heavily affected...

There is far less ash in the middle altitudes such as 15,000 feet where piston engines operate happily and can breath through air filters, and are less affected to completely unaffected by this ash... If some of the small airlines had thought to scrounge around for some of the old airliners still hauling freight - DC 6, 7, etc. - they could have made a killing hauling stranded passengers, and especially in Europe where the countries are closer and smaller (we have counties which are bigger than some of their countries)...

denny-o
 
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