The silver lining?

So here I am...stuck in Germany. Well, not really stuck, since I know when I am going to return to the UK. A few days ago Iceland decided to cough (as an acquintance of mine put it!) and spluttered volcanic ash all over Europe. Flights were cancelled and the world was/is in chaos. We heard a comment on German radio the other day, which roughly translated said,"First they burn our money, then they send us the ashes!"

When Ryanair announced last Friday that there would be no flights to and from the UK until at least Monday lunchtime, I thought I should make some alternative arrangements, bearing in mind I was supposed to be back at work on Monday. I tried in vain to get through to Ryanair to re-book my flight. This, with hindsight, was a truly Good Thing, because I probably wouldn't have been back in the UK before May Bank Holiday the way things are going. The alternative options open to me were firstly the train, which I decided was a) too expensive, and b) the thought of lugging bags on and off trains and luggage racks while my back is still in recovery (a few months and several chiropractic sessions later) did not exactly enthrall me. Second option was to take a bus to Victoria. After some online investigation and a trip to a local travel agency, I was able to book onto the first available bus, which leaves Heidelberg tomorrow at midnight. This gets me into London late morning on Thursday.

The media is full of tales of people's long and arduous journeys across Europe to reach the Channel ports, hiring cars and taxis at inflated prices or having to stay on camp beds in airports or at expensive hotels while they wait for the skies to clear. Dan Snow, the historian and BBC presenter, even took a flotilla of inflatable boats across the channel at the weekend to pick up stranded Brits ("Ye Olde Dunkirk Spirit"). He was stopped in his tracks at Calais, although I do believe he took a few back. I do consider myself one of the lucky ones, having somewhere safe and comfortable to wait, and feel really sorry for those without money and nowhere to go.

Meanwhile the airlines are whinging that it's all taking too long and they're losing money, and let's ignore the fact that the volcanic ash damaged the engines of some f-16s. Lufthansa sent some planes from Munich to Frankfurt, which the BBC decided was evidence that they were 'test flights'. In fact, they were sent there to have them ready for when the planes were ready to really carry passengers. The BBC claimed that they flew "at altitudes of up to 8000m." What they didn't say was that most of the way they were travelling at 3000m, well below normal flying altitude. The time they spent at 8000m must have been barely a few minutes, considering the short flight time between the two cities. Other airlines are also sending test flights and claiming no damage to engines. What if the effects are cumulative? I'm not sure I would want to be in one of the first flights going back!

Ryanair don't care

I had a very special birthday present from Ryanair on Sunday, of an extra 5 hours and 40 minutes in Germany. The bad news is that they were spent at Baden airport!

I had priority boarding and got on the plane, due to leave Baden at 17:10. About half the passengers got on board before everything ground to a halt. The cabin crew were rather baffled and tried to get some information. After a few minutes the pilot told us that we were going to have to get off the plane. Another plane, two stands down from us had been struck by lightning and they were transferring its passengers onto our plane! To add insult to injury, it appeared that once the other plane had been OK'd by an engineer, we would fly out on that one! I’ve only just recovered from being a rather nervous flyer after many years. I can honestly say that this news did not inspire me with confidence!

We were taken back to the terminal building and all staff promptly disappeared. A while later a disembodied voice informed us that the delay would be indefinite as they were waiting for the engineer.
Two hours later the voice said that they didn't know how long it was likely to take and Ryanair were now offering passengers who didn't want to wait, the option of either getting a full refund or leaving on the next available flight....
I joined the queue at the information desk, prepared to take the latter option, but while we were queuing, we were informed that Ryanair were sending a plane to take us to Stansted which would arrive at Baden just before 10.

Eventually we took off at 22:50 and I got home shortly before 1am.

At no point were we offered any food, drink or communications facilities even though airlines have an obligation to do so with such a delay. Having had to arrive at the airport two hours before take off, I had been there for a full 8 hours before our eventual take off.

I bought myself a small something to eat and drink, used my mobile phone to call those who were expecting me and duly faxed my complaint to Ryanair yesterday. I received a reply today giving me a pathetic 5 Euros refund. I am not impressed, to say the least.

A memorable birthday, but for the wrong reasons.