It's quite simple really
It's quite simple really, the Met-office are the experts in forecasting both weather and ash. The CAA are responsible for identifying the no-fly zones. Just cos weird beard, BA and a bunch of airline accountants don't like it, that doesn't make the experts wrong.
What the airlines need to do is get a hell of a lot better at acting on the information IN ADVANCE to avoid passengers waiting for hours at airports needlessly. The met-office forecast this ash cloud hitting us a couple of days ago, the research aircraft have validated their projections today. There really is no excuse for the airlines allowing their pax to turn up for flights that any idiot could tell 24 hours in advance weren't going to run. They seriously need to get their finger out and stop messing their customers about like this.
If you believe the charts this evening it looks like airports like SOU, BOH etc are out for tomorrow, so why can't the airline ops people save people the trouble of turning up and waiting around for flights that almost certainly aren't gonna go...
Head in the sand and dodo spring to mind I'm afraid. Passengers understand that the ash cloud isn't the airline's fault - what is their fault is not being up front about what is going on and that is only going to make the passengers more annoyed.. Nobody wants to waste a day hanging round an airport - better to reschedule and fly another day.
Desk-pilot