Iceland: Volcano disrupts flights in UK and other European countries

My uni friend went to Moscow last week for research for her dissertation.  She was pick-pocketed on public transport there and is stuck in Moscow with no wallet/credit cards/bank cards/cash.  To add insult to injury, her phone is out of credit and she's having difficulty contacting her bank here to cancel her cards.  Luckily she is staying with friends of a friend and still has her passport, but she's stuck in Moscow like this until this volcano nonsense clears up.  I feel so bad for her, worst trip ever.

Well the wording is a bit tricky in that particular article...

I found these articles that might explain it a bit clearer. 

http://www.which.co.uk/advice/flight-delays-and-cancellations-your-rights/how-much-you-can-claim/index.jsp

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/flight-delays#cancel

This might be why some of the airlines are saying you have to "apply" for a refund.  It gives them time to prove that the volcanic eruption is an "extraordinary circumstance" so they aren't required to compensate you at all.  Although I'm pretty sure it is already easily recognizable as an "act of God" (which is why most insurance companies are offering no help also).

I think that "Further compensation" tends to mean that the airline will not be responsible for other costs apart from getting you to your destination...e.g. if you were getting married and missed the wedding due to not being able to travel then the airline aren't responsible for refunding all the expenses incurred in your wedding.

I'm supposed to fly out of here tomorrow at 10am, but I just called and they said my flight was still on. I was like, "I'm going to be very upset when I have to call back and have you change my flight." Madness it is. Especially when this isn't supposed to clear up for awhile.

I'm supposed to fly out of here tomorrow at 10am, but I just called and they said my flight was still on. I was like, "I'm going to be very upset when I have to call back and have you change my flight." Madness it is. Especially when this isn't supposed to clear up for awhile.

Well you don't want to fly on a dirty plane do you? What will people think?

Surprise, surprise - my flight for tomorrow morning was canceled. Earliest that I can get out is next Monday! Good for me

This whole thing has been a nightmare for me! Hubs is stuck in the US and we don't know when he'll get back.  He has a rebooked flight leaving tomorrow to Geneva then Frankfurt then Manchester.  I'm not holding my breath that the flight will actually go ahead.  We have a mortgage contract he needs to sign so that a survey can get done on the house we want to buy.  Solicitors apts we have canceled and rescheduled that need to be canceled again.  I have to call everyone tomorrow and hopefully they'll be understanding.  Also I'm bone tired from single parenting with no end in sight! *bleep*ing ash cloud!!

Airports in UK will remain closed until at least 7pm tomorrow (Monday) night.

We are still in Turkey with 2 kids and suppose to leave at 2am wed morning and thomas cook says they cant do anything until officially canceled so we wait ;-)

At least we have a hotel that is not insanely expensive - only 62 pounds a night for 4 of us all inclusive as they are giving us a deal.

I really want to get home though - turkey is nice but I want my bed!

Ugh, just when I thought things couldn't be worse, the BBC points out that people waiting for their bone marrow transplants are now left in a very, very vulnerable state because the stem cells are always flown in by couriers to make it to the patient in time.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8628078.stm

The thing is, it isn't just like a blood donation where the donor just gives, the blood can be kept for ages, and the patient just gets it - there's a long lead-up for the donor getting shots to stimulate stem cell production before the donation, and the patient has to start their week-long chemo before the cells are donated, too. And the stem cells are only good for 72hrs and in a lot of cases, can only come from that one particular donor out of the entire world population! So those poor 16 people are stuck with zero defences in complete isolation and zero stem cells now because of the flights, and the donor can't produce more stem cells for at least three weeks (to start the process again). So those people have essentially just been given a death sentence. It's hard enough to endure the wait between getting the stem cells and waiting for them to engraft, but now this is going to be at least 3-4 times longer and the chances of picking up an infection in that time are dramatically increased.

That could've been me. My stem cells were from an American donor and came by couriered flight last summer. 

Aye
I think that sometimes people forget about the BIGGER picture. It affects everything when planes can't fly..
 VERY IMPORTANT life saving treatments such as stem cells .. and as you pointed out the results unfortunately could be catastrophic for those waiting for life saving medical treatment.. sigggggh 
 As well as food,other goods and services.

I live in Texas, and my employer is being affected by this.  We can't get parts we need out of Scotland.  We also can't ship finished product to one of our biggest customers (in Norway), or to anywhere needing connections in the affected areas. 

My husband is stuck in the US too.  He was there for work and his flight was cancelled last week.  The ealiest rebook he could get was April 27th.  I'm hoping the air is clear by then. 

My husband is stuck in the US too.  He was there for work and his flight was cancelled last week.  The ealiest rebook he could get was April 27th.  I'm hoping the air is clear by then. 

What airlines was he flying?

Air New Zealand out of Los Angeles.

Oh, I was on American Airlines. I can't get out until Monday.