The Race To Ash Covered Europe Begins

[ESPImperium]

With Europen air space more or less closed, what do think FOTA, FOM and FIA do for the 10,000 tonnes of freight that the teams and FOM have in equiptment, not to mention the 5,000 people that follow F1 arround the world in terms of team personell, FIA personell and media people.

Personally, i can see them fly to Barcelona and have everything in a holding pen there, and posibly popspone updates till either Monaco or Turkey.

Whats your oppinion on what the next real race for the teams will be???

[Miguel]

ESP, you may like to know that El Prat airport (Barcelona's) was closed a few hours ago. Madrid is still open, though.

[The Local Ride]

On BBC Brundle interviewed a chap from FOM who is in charge of freight. Apparently the majority of equip is transported via six 747 cargo planes! Not many obvious alternatives on the ground

[autogyro]

On BBC Brundle interviewed a chap from FOM who is in charge of freight. Apparently the majority of equip is transported via six 747 cargo planes! Not many obvious alternatives on the ground

It is only a simple logistics problem.
Land in the 'clear' East of Europe and meet transporters from the teams, it is then only 24 hours from base if you have ferry priority.
Get to it Bernie.
36 hours and I would get them back, simple.
At the moment it looks like the F1 people are the same as those who stand at supermarket check outs when the electric gets cut. They cant sell anything unless it goes 'blip'.
Silly modern society. dehhhh

[Confused_Andy]

Legard has just tweeted that McLaren have arranged a flight to Barcelona for themselves & others and then teams will get coaches from there...

As for the equipment, surely the FOM will redirect the haulage flights to an area outside of the ash cloud inside Europe and the teams will use their trucks to drive home from there.

I dunno why everyone is panicking, surely it just takes a few phone calls and a little logic and your home.

[Confused_Andy]

Also just think how many tie-ins with aircraft companies the teams have.

Air Asia, Etihad, Virgin... It just requires a paddock walk and someone'll offer a hand.

[ESPImperium]

I wonder if the Turkish GP can be brought forward, swap with the Spanish GP and you have a solution.

I know its pritty easy to adjust, but its more a logistical nightmare more than anything else!!!

Heres a couple of resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_travel ... l_eruption
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aftermath_ ... l_eruption

[Richard]

UK teams will struggle to cross the channel. All ferries and Eurostar are booked up until middle of the week

[Miguel]

In related news, the MotoGP race in Japan, that was due next week, has been postponed to October due to the ash cloud.

From what I've read, Turkey is still completely open. I suppose that, as a last resort, they can fly to either Istambul or Ankara, and set things up from there.

[fausto cedros]

As some of you know, i currently work as a radar ATC officer, and i just had my night shift terminated before the start of the race; For the moment the airspace is being closed up to FL350. In the early hours of the day some of the french airspace was manageable below fl 195. A cargo aircraft from Frankfurt managed to escape the blockade making a Z flight plan with visual departure, climbing out of fl350 then continuing IFR at the first available entry in the routing system. That wouldn't be possible for flights carrying passengers, though.

[Miguel]

That wouldn't be possible for flights carrying passengers, though.

May I ask why? I also have an unrelated question, if you don't mind: Do passenger flights go often above FL350? I'm always pissed for not being able to see the aircraft's data ever since I entered the cockpit of an A320 back in 1999 (airspeed was 300 knots CAS, IIRC).

[Just_a_fan]

UK teams will struggle to cross the channel. All ferries and Eurostar are booked up until middle of the week

So that's most of the grid then.

There's nothing to stop the private charter of a suitable boat of course...

[manchild]

What if it starts erupting much more as suggested?

In 1816. there was no summer because of Mount Tambora eruption in 1815. People were dying of hunger and cold as sun wasn't able to reach the earth trough volcanic cloud.

I think that we should hope that it stops erupting for life-important issues rather than F1.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_Without_a_Summer

[autogyro]

Of course the main reason for increased volcanic activity in the area, is because of global warming caused by human activity.
The ice sheets have reduced and taken pressure off the Earths crust, changing the capability for magma to reach the surface.
Just another result of the wonderful global greed machine and the fossil fuel barons that drive it and leech of all of us.
Shows the vulnerability of the human aviation system doesnt it.
Just a begining though, just wait until Earths magnetic field and the effects of the Sun start to knock out the electronics and communication systems.
My suggestion; buy a wind turbine, get an allotment and ride bicycle.

[WhiteBlue]

I have heard that Tambora was one or two magnitudes bigger than the Iceland disaster.