Volcano's Eruption Beginning to Hurt Europe's Economy

Source: The Star (Canada)

An erupting Icelandic volcano that has shut down airline traffic over much of Europe for the past three days shows no sign of calming down, sparking fears that continued eruptions could hamper the continent’s efforts to struggle out of recession’s grip.

Southern Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano resumed erupting for the second time in a month last Wednesday, spewing ash several kilometres into the air, and leading to the cancellation of tens of thousands of airline flights around the world.

Life in Europe is fast becoming, in the words of one Parisian newspaper, “la grande pagaille” — the big mess.

Virtually every airport is closed in England, Scotland, the Netherlands, Belgium, northern France, Poland, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and much of Norway, Italy, Bosnia, Croatia and Slovenia.

Airlines are collectively losing more than $200 million a day. Kenyan flower and vegetable producers, unable to deliver to Europe, are watching their crops rot. In Italy, fresh-made Mozzarella cheese, highly perishable, can’t be shipped. And grocers used to ‘just in time’ deliveries of fresh dairy and produce fear empty shelves when current stocks run out.

FedEx, DHL and other shippers are grounded throughout much of Europe; FedEx alone has cancelled more than 100 flights since the volcano began belching again; the courier says it cannot fly to 15 European airports, including its Paris distribution hub at Charles de Gaulle airport.

Scores of U.S. military resupply flights for Afghanistan, many of which pass through European airspace, have been grounded or redirected, and combat casualties from the region, normally sent to the giant U.S. air base and hospital at Ramstein, Germany, were being flown directly to the United States.

more: http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/797139--volcano-s-eruption-beginning-to-hurt-europe-s-economy?bn=1

We need to develop high-speed freight rail systems as a back-up

The local merchants who used to provide goods & services have been pushed out of business, in favor of cheaper goods from elsewhere.. As long as things hum along with no glitches, it;s fine, but when a problem like this happens, the whole thing falls apart..

It's one planet, globalization is good, and I'm sure we'll work out the glitches. Ground effect transports may become much more attractive in the future, and they deliver payloads using a lot less fuel per ton.