Airlines in trouble as ash returns

In Ireland, Aer Lingus canceled two Saturday flights to and from Boston, citing the exceptionally circuitous routes to get around the cloud, and planned to combine passengers from two flights onto one.

SHOOT: It's just a matter of time before a plane, insisting on flying in these conditions, develops engine problems and crashes. The expenses of flying around all this ash is an additional expense most airlines cannot afford in the present economy.

clipped from www.news24.com Dublin - A mammoth cloud of volcanic ash stretching 2 000km across the North Atlantic is forcing most flights between North America and Europe to divert into a sky-high traffic jam, Irish and European air authorities said. Forecasters warned that the rapidly spreading cloud of ash from Iceland's Eyjafjallajokul volcano was projected to reach southern Greenland and the northwest tip of Spain by Saturday. The obstacle was already forcing about 600 daily flights operated by more than 40 airlines to carry extra fuel, because the diversions were lengthening flights by up to two hours. Air safety officials stressed that the cloud does not pose any immediate threat to shut airports or ground aircraft once again. But they said the expanding obstacle would force trans-Atlantic flights into air corridors that run unusually south into Spanish airspace or north into the Arctic.