The world has gone barking mad - yes it is an excellent idea not to fly into a volcanic ash cloud but to stay on the ground when the weather is 8/8 blue is ridiculous.
The SARF is ops only at the moment and one has to wonder at the logic - if it is too dangerous to fly because of the ash then it is too dangerous to fly full stop. If it is safe to fly on SAROPs then it is safe to fly on training.
Our helos have a very splendid sandfilter/particle separator on the engines which is good enough for Afghanistan sand but not good enough for Icelandic ash!!!!!
All around the country, mil aircraft are being wheeled into hangars to protect them while the sun still shines brightly in the sky - talk about risk-averse decision making
