Volcanoes and Airplanes

[@jeffsaxton2051]

My dad was in the 489th Bomb Squadron, 340th Bomb Group, and remembered the 1944 Vesuvius eruptions. I have his Squadron Yearbook with various photos of the event.

[@DavidBrown-cs1tq]

My Dad was there also. He was the 5th Army Mess Sgt and had to set up field kitchens to feed the civilians that were being evacuated and the troops helping evacuate them

[@theswaff699]

Damn, you're dad's been alive since 79AD?

[@EperogiLimousine]

@@theswaff699 1944 eruption dingus,

[@daerdevvyl4314]

NolanDoesStuff Because every volcano only erupts once, right?

[@pamelamays4186]

That British Airways captain's announcement to his passengers is the most British thing I've ever heard.🧑‍✈️✈️🧐

[@rexstetson1717]

It seemed inappropriate to me. He could have just let the passengers know they were experiencing issues without stating what the issues were. There was no reason to give specifics. If I had been a passenger onboard that flight, I probably would have shat myself before dying of a heart attack after hearing that announcement.

[@doofus02]

​@@rexstetson1717 he probably assumed he was speaking to like minded British passengers. I imagine there were multiple instances of someone saying "Oh, bother." with a concerned furrow in their brow.

[@gordonsmith4884]

@@doofus02 Or "No engines? Will there still be tea?"

[@anathema2325]

​@@rexstetson1717 trying to keep it up on a wing and a prayer, he's doing the wing least the passengers could do is provide the prayer

[@daerdevvyl4314]

doofus02 That reminds me of something I read once, where a British newspaper referred to the American Revolution which was currently happening as "the unpleasantness."

[@bubbasgood]

A company I worked for in the early 80s supplied cool air intake vains for one of the boeing planes that went through a volcanic ash cloud. We recueved feed back that our parts survived with only a sandblasted apperance and could have possibly been resused when most of the other turbine parts were beyond salvage. Business was good after that. An inside company joke on the Quality Assurance Documentation was little note VT for volcano tested.

[@shawnreece6130]

Great job pronouncing the name of that Icelandic volcano, I would have never gotten through that.

[@sherirobinson6867]

He definitely did his homework 😅

[@chillindave1357]

No kidding!

[@jameswolf133]

As I once heard about talking to people in Iceland, “No they’re not being jerks. The place names are literally unpronounceable!”

[@terryhollands2794]

​@@chillindave1357 my words exactly 😊

[@LowEarthOrbitPilot]

A friend of mine from the region told me it was pronounced, “eye-ah-fyallah-yo-kool”.

[@am2dan]

THANK YOU for not posting this yesterday when my son was on a plane to Tokyo. It was out of transponder range and didn't show on flightradar24 for a very long time as it was flying east of Kamchatka where there's been a volcano spewing ash. I assumed it was still in the air, but there was still that little bit of worry in the back of my mind that would have been greatly magnified if I had just watched this. (He arrived just fine.)

[@charleskyler1928]

My wife was one of those affected by the air travel of the 2010 Icelandic eruption. We worked for days to try and find a way for her to get home. She was on the last flight out of Marseille France made it into Madrid, Spain and was able to fly back to the US from Madrid. She has a photo of the departures board from Madrid, showing all flights except hers being canceled. Thanks for the history.

[@katrix110]

Friendly community geologist (PhD student) and aviation nerd (national air and space museum volubteer) here! There is some WILD stuff that happens when volcanoes meet airplanes- you covered most of it. The craziest related phenomenon is along the Alaska flight route- The Valley of 10,000 Smokes is basically a giant field full of volcanic ash from the 1912 Novarupta eruption. When winds are at specific strengths and in specific directions, the ash can actually be blown up into the air and will cause air traffic control to reroute jets even today- and this is because of an eruption that happened over a century ago. Thus, a volcano doesn’t even have to be erupting for airplanes to be at risk of a volcanic meltdown. Feel free to reach out for more info/extra questions if the topic comes up for the podcast or a recap, if you’d like :)

[@Vile-Flesh]

Very interesting

[@Paladin1873]

My brother was a USAF C-141 Starlifter navigator in 1991 and had to evacuate American military families from Clark Air Base in the Philippines following the Mt Pinatubo disaster. Each person was allowed to bring two suitcases with them. Everything else was left behind for local scavengers to salvage (steal). We ended up closing Clark AB and the US Navy base at Subic Bay. These peacetime losses dwarfed the damage done at the Pompeii airfield in 1944.

[@LadyAnuB]

Interesting note on these bases. The Philippines want to use the US military to counter China now. What a difference 30 years makes.

[@davidatovar]

Now I remember Mt. Pinatubo, thanks !

[@davidatovar]

And thanks to your family service !

[@Paladin1873]

@@davidatovar You are welcome, though others did far more.

[@lizj5740]

When Russia (the U.S.S.R.) invaded Hungary to suppress the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, we were living in base housing in Mannheim, Germany. Our family consisted of dad, who would have to remain there to fight, and mom and four children, one only 5 months old. Dad, then a captain in the Chemical Corps, brought a rifle (or pistol?) home. Each dependent family was allowed to pack one box to take with them if evacuation became necessary. Thank goodness it didn't: I would have had to leave my toy horses and stable behind. (Hey, I was only 9.)

[@codenamecatatonic8894]

I had no idea Mt Vesuvius had another major eruption in modern times or that we had troops stationed at “Pompey Airfield” Thank you for posting & to the Veterans that served. Great video. 👍

[@RetiredSailor60]

Good morning from Ft Worth TX History Guy and everyone watching. I was supposed to have gone to Pompeii and Mount Vesuvius in 1995 while deployed to the Mediterranean on USS Whidbey Island LSD 41. But the conditions in Bosnia cancelled the port visit to Naples.

[@NVRAMboi]

I might not look smarter, but I feel smarter having watched this episode. Thanks HG!

[@markloveless1001]

Leave us not forget Mount Tambora gave us a rained-in Mary Shelley. "Let's write scary stories!" Oh, she did, bigtime.

[@-jeff-]

The fact that ashes caused so few crashes is history that deserves to be remembered. 🌋 🛩

[@thomasblanchard6778]

l remember in a nursery rhyme "Ashes, ashes, we all fall down!"

[@davidatovar]

I'm thinking about MH370 ? ✈🌋🤔

[@EperogiLimousine]

@@thomasblanchard6778 tissues

[@CaptainJerry-]

As a Merchant Mariner I have had volcanic ash rain on my ships from Mt St Helens, Mt Etna, Mt Tavurvur in Rabaul, PNG.

[@quillmaurer6563]

8:50 Having British ancestry, I describe even rather catastrophic things - such as being hit by a train or a school catching on fire - as "inconvenient." Because, being less than losing all four engines for unknown reasons imperiling 263 lives, they aren't on the level of a "small problem."

[@taitano12]

This is one of many things in History that don't DESERVE to be remembered, but NEED to be remembered. Pilots learn of this stuff even when going through Private Pilot's Certification. It's not not necessarily covered in Recreational Pilot's training, though it is covered in RPC training here in the shadow of Mount Baker, Glacier and Rainier. Edit: BTW, I don't think the new tech will relegate these incidents to history, but it will reduce them.

[@georgewnewman3201]

I remember the Speedbird 9 incident. As I recall, they got the engines restarted, climbed to altitude again, only to have the engines shut down again. They then got some restarted the second time on the way back to Jakarta but stayed at a lower altitude only to worry about whether they had enough clearance to get over the mountain range between the airplane and the airport.

[@navret1707]

I’ve been in both Iceland and Sicily. Those volcanoes are definitely attention grabbing even though they both were generally minor eruptions.

[@baneverything5580]

There are several very dangerous volcanoes showing signs of erupting right now in Alaska, Germany, North Korea, Japan, Italy, Columbia, and Iceland etc. The ones in Alaska have a history of causing volcanic Winters. See documentaries about the 536 A.D. mystery cataclysm. We depend 100% on agriculture yet nothing is ever said about what these volcanoes can do and have done and will certainly do again. It`s disgusting to ignore this and do nothing to prepare.

[@Chris_at_Home]

We’re you in a Patrol Squadron? I climbed Mt Etna with some friends in 1973 when I was In Sigonella.

[@navret1707]

@@Chris_at_Home VP-10 and -24. In 1973 I was in -30. Who where you with?

[@Chris_at_Home]

@@navret1707 I was in VP-23 from 1972 to 1975. My older brother was in VP-10 from 1963-1967.

[@navret1707]

@@Chris_at_Home - I missed your brother by a year. I was in -10 from 1968 - 1971.

[@larsenjbl]

I flew into Guayaquil more than a few years ago, and just about the time I was landing, a volcano erupted near Quito. Fast forward a few days and my meetings were over, but my return flight had been cancelled - along with all flights in the interim. There were many hundreds of stranded passengers for a couple of days until the airlines resumed operations.

[@ronaldschoolcraft8654]

I used to be a design engineer on Allison Model 250 gas turbine engines which are used heavily in helicopters. Tourist helicopters flying in and around volcanoes in Hawaii had many engine problems as a result. Sulfudation of the turbine blades was one serious problem. Several went down in or near volcanoes during the seven years that I worked on that program.

[@MrScott1171]

I was watching @GeologyHub earlier. He does mention when a volcano has erupted about air routes possibly being closed due to an eruption or possible eruption. He has many videos about many historic volcanic events too.

[@Orxenhorf]

I don't remember the airline or flight number, but there was a PBS or cable show on an airliner that lost power from the engines for an unknown reason with nothing obvious external or damage to the plane itself. They only figured that one out after taking apart the engine and finding a layer of glass covering internal parts.

[@glenmartin2437]

Thank you. That was a good reminder. My mother's people are from Italy. I got interested in volcanoes as a kid. Our laboratory received water samples from Mount Pinatubo and I was able to perform analyses on them years ago. That was interesting.

[@R182video]

I was in the UK when the Icelandic volcano let loose in 2010. There were many others in my company there as well. My flight back to the US left a day earlier than the others and I was watching the plane's track on the on board map display. Instead of taking the great circle route that is normally used, I noticed that at a certain point the plane suddenly tracked due west across the Atlantic, then when we got close to Newfoundland returned to following the great circle route. I arrived home and those who were to leave the next day ended up with an unexpected European vacation until the air travel restrictions were lifted.

[@rbeard7580]

I was stationed on Guam in the early 80’s, flying the B-52. In the Squadron they kept a souvenir of a B-52’s volcano encounter: A badly crazed, nearly opaque small “eyebrow” window from the plane’s cockpit. I believe the remaining window segments were sent around to be displayed at other Air Force bases. I never heard the full story of what happened, but we were briefed that severe engine damage was another possibility. Our low level practice routes took us over several remote volcanic islands, some of them occasionally belching smoke. We were to avoid those doing so, and immediately report them so the route could be immediately changed for any following aircraft.

[@snotgurgletroll1812]

Love your pronunciation of Icelandic names (volcanoes)!

[@michaelroloson2389]

Great job once again HG. I love your programs.

[@williamromine5715]

My father was flown home by the Red Cross from the Pacific war because my mother had broken her leg. He said they flew over an erupting volcano. (If memory serves me right, it was over Mexico. He said it was an beautifull sight. After making sure my mom was not too incapacitated, he was returned to his ship. He was in the Merchant Marines. I remember my mom being on crutches(I was born in January of 1942), and thought she wouldn't be able to catch me if I ran when it was time for my nap. I was wrong...and I never ran from her again. It's funny what memories we retain from childhood. Another memory was seeing a Goodyear blimp and thinking it was an atom bomb. This time I ran home scared to death.

[@laserbeam002]

Without a doubt one of the best channels on KZbin. Thank you for posting.

[@jeremy5602]

I’m very glad he talked about British Airways 009. You can’t talk about volcanic ash and airplanes without talking about that incident. If anyone is interested in more details about it, Mentour Pilot made a great video about it.

[@suzannetitkemeyernlq]

You did a great job! I live in Costa Rica. We have active volcanoes. Occasionally they suspend all flights in and out of our country's airports/airspace because of the fumes and ash.

[@elsiestormont1366]

As a 30 + year resident of Fairbanks, Alaska, I have witnessed the effects of Mt. Redoubt's activity on air travel. More than once, the Fairbanks International Airport has filled up with planes originally bound for Anchorage. The locals will go by the airport to get a look at all the different planes that we usually don't get to see up here. Also, with a major airbase and army post in Anchorage (Elmendorf/Richardson) as well as Fairbanks' own Eielson AFB and Army post Ft. Wainwright, Alaskan volcanic activity can have a huge impact on the US military ability to mobilize in the northern hemishere. Another bit of trivia: Crews literally shrink wrap the jets grounded in Anchorage after an eruption to keep falling ash out of the engines.

[@Kevin_Carlson]

I'm an expat living in Ecuador. In 2015 my wife and I were traveling from Quito to Houston. As we were preparing to board the plane the airline agent announced "please take your seats quickly. There is ash in the air from Mt. Cotopaxi and the pilot needs to take off as soon as possible." Fortunately we made it.

[@iroh1048]

Good subject. Very informative and very well presented.

[@DorisS75]

You dovetailed with Green Dot Aviation this week! It's really cool the way watching both completes the story. You gave historical context and he gave specific details.

[@otpyrcralphpierre1742]

I remember flying from a Cuidad Del Carmen in southern Mexico and flying around an erupting volcano. We diverted a little to the west of the event, but when we passed it, the pilot announced to look out the window to see the volcano that was pushing ash and smoke into the sky. It was a beautiful sight, but I didn't even realize the danger that we were going around. Beauty is not always Generous.

[@MightyMezzo]

Loved hearing your account of British Airways flight 009. According to a “Mayday” documentary, the passengers later formed “The Flight 009 Glider Club.” BTW, I’d be curious to know how much practice it took to master pronunciation of the Icelandic volcano names.

[@wheelieblind]

Wow... I'm glad they were able to get the engines to work again.

[@CwL-1984]

I never thought about these two things at the same time.

[@matthewbyrd398]

I would love to see an episode on the Tenerife Disaster.

[@robertmoffett3486]

A couple of minutes in, I texted my daughter about this, which we weren't aware of. Even though she visited Pompeii, and climbed Vesuvius just two summers ago, and intends to return. Live and learn. Thanks, History Guy, for educating us

[@seegurke93]

As an airline pilot i can confirm that thats not fun at all... most important thing is to do an 180 out of an ash cloud and keep the thrust at minimum. best is to do the 180 and descend with idle power to have the minimum ash on the engines. It more than once happened to completly scratch the wind shield so you have 0 visibility and engines having to be shut down. luckily there are ashtams that warn us pilots and also the swc (significant weather chart) has i marked if there is an active vulcanoe, so you take enough extra fuel and just fly around :) Grüße B737&A320 Pilot

[@johnmcnally7812]

Always enjoyed Moody's iconic quote that the experience was "a bit like negotiating one's way up a badger's arse"

[@shawnr771]

I might have enjoyed the quote, but I shudder to think how he knew the comparison.

[@BasicDrumming]

I appreciate you, thank you for making content.

[@chillindave1357]

My favorite channel 😊

[@halcyonOH]

Great video, big fan of anything volcanoes.

[@roberttaylor7637]

Another Great Episode. I love volcanos.

[@Eric_Hutton.1980]

All Four Engines Have Failed is a good read about the British Airways Boeing 747 that flew into the ash cloud of Mount Galunggung in the early 1980s.

[@robertcook5201]

Excellent choice of visuals

[@markdodd1152]

People joke with me about the calmness of my tone when there's an emergency situation. So I can relate to the captain

[@timothymulholland7905]

In august/2011 my wife and I visited Argentina, with a stop at Bariloche. A volcano just across the Andes in Chile had been spewing all over. The airport was closed and the city was covered in gray ash, with millions of tiny glass beads all over. Needless to say, skiing was out and the town was empty of tourists at the height of skiing season. We’ll try to go back when the volcanos are quiet.

[@Murkosk]

Great video, thank you.

[@Murkosk]

This is a scam☝️

[@captainskippy6622]

My wife and I left LaGuardia airport during this in 2010 headed to Milan Italy. We later found out we were the last plane allowed across the ocean to Europe from NY. It was the start of a long miserable flight. We went a dizzying route to keep us away from the plume. There was a monitor on a bulkhead that gave a general idea of our route and I noticed at one point we were over some part of Russia and this caused me some concern. We finally had to land in Rome because the Pilot said we were low on fuel. For some reason we were not allowed off the plane and set there for 5 hours. Many passengers including myself were becoming fed up. Finally we went wheels up and eventually landed in Milam. We were in that plane for 24 hours total. It was miserable but the vacation made up for it.

[@akdrywallguy60]

Congratulations for pronouncing the Talkeetna Mountains in AK correctly. You're one of the very few who get it right without correction! Cheers from Talkeetna, AK (pop 1055)!

[@onliwankannoli]

They really need to make a movie about volcanoes and planes, and it MUST star Samuel L. Jackson.

[@thecreamyone3606]

My god I love this guy and his bowties! Wish he was my uncle

[@lanceferraro3781]

I watched Etna erupt, also Stormboli and on the Hawaiian Big Island, Kilauea. I lived in Waikiki Beach, and when Kilauea erupted sometimes trade winds would blow the sulpherous gasses over to Oahu. On the way, atmospheric moisture would mix with the sulpherous gasses and make VOlcanic Fog, which we called VOG. Eyes, throats, noses, lungs, ears, skin would become very irritated. Just had to endure, the only way to get away from it was to leave the island.

[@AskTorin]

Your pronunciation of the jøkul is the best I've ever heard of an American. Love your channel!

[@raywhitehead730]

Hey, History Guy I flew into Two volcanos on purpose. Navy helicopter Aviator. First in was Mnt. Saint Helens about a year After the explosion/eruption. I did it purely out of curiosity. It was a mistake! We flew through the mostly invisible Hydrogen Sulfide gas coming up from the volcano. My whole crew immediately became very nauseous. I felt ill for two days and stayed in my room the entire time. The second volcano was years latter, Hit Weighs in Antarctica. Totally different circumstance.

[@raywhitehead730]

Mount Eribus, Antarctica. Auto spell seems to sometimes kick in after I hut send.

[@gregoryforde7447]

Many Thanks

[@orcstr8d]

9:34 “at the time it was the longest glide in a non-purpose built aircraft.” Maybe you could do one onthe switch to metric and the near disaster of the Air Canada “Gimli Glider” which happened the following year 1983. Plane was at 41,000 feet and had to make a dead-stick landing.

[@jimwolaver9375]

Where's my pirates? Seriously, great video as always. Too bad there aren't more content producers in your league.

[@andrewstevenson118]

My wife and I took our first overseas trip during the 2010 eruptions. There was real doubt whether we could get from our home, in New Zealand, to Munich. But we did. Our next overseas trip was to London in 2012 and someone died on the flight. So, a couple of interesting first two flights. 🙂

[@RolloTonéBrownTown]

i love the deadpan of the captain. "Nothing to be concerned about but we lost all 4 engines. Don't worry tho it will probably be all good" At least no one was killed

[@coreydarr8464]

Very fascinating!

[@LoserwinS1]

I was surprised to hear my hometown newspaper used as a source! Keep up the good work THG!

[@raypelling6440]

"...all four engines have stopped....I trust you are not in too much distress." Oh no, not at all...right as rain...😳😳😳😳😳😳😬😬😬😬😬😬😬😬

[@jjohnsonTX]

Pucker factor somewhat elevated.

[@shawnr771]

I would be ok without the announcement. Another shot of whiskey please.

[@jeffbangkok]

Good evening

[@pauljaworski9386]

I've read that a day before the Pompeii eruption a B25 came back from it's bomb run. It didn't drop it's bombs so instead of landing with the bombs they dropped them in the volcano crater The next day it blew it's top. Some blame the B25 that dropped it's bombs in the crater for the eruption.

[@RCAvhstape]

If that's true it's a great story. "American bomber crew angers the gods!"

[@ukar69]

I remember the Icelandic ash cloud. I lived in London at the time where aircraft turn onto final approach to Heathrow. It was eerie to have no aircraft at all. Another effect of volcanic ash is the particles are very abrasive. I believe the BA flight also had damage to the windscreen to the point it was difficult to see through.

[@andrewwhyte8174]

At 9:48, why do the engine on the left wing look closer together than the right?

[@daviddickson7067]

Always interesting and entertaining.

[@susanadams-wauro6716]

Love your videos!!

[@frankgulla2335]

Nice job revealing the tale of volcanoes and airplanes. Thanks, THG

[@constipatedinsincity4424]

Back in the Saddle Again Naturally!

[@Mike-DuBose]

You dared to dream. When others were content, you worked harder. When others settled, you reached higher. You are one of life’s inspiring characters. Enjoy the happiness from this great achievement.

[@ElicBehexan]

I believe I remember the 2010 volcano trapped the then new Doctor from the show Doctor Who in the States. He was here for a convention.

[@BuzzSargent]

This is a particularly good show. BTW is the CCCP helmet a new addition? Happy Trails

[@WoogietheWoogie]

I never realized that volcanoes were that intertwined to aviation. Thanks History Guy.

[@luciennerizk4549]

Great opener!

[@amadeusamwater]

Shows how well trained those commercial flight crews are.

[@Chris_at_Home]

In the last few weeks airspace over the N Pacific and Alaska has been affected by two volcanos, one in the Aleutians and one in Russia.

[@aveirofado]

Thank you for lowering the volume level of your outro music track on these recent videos. It's a much smoother listening experience now.

[@stevedietrich8936]

What a great collection of stories today. You're a boss for even attempting the name of the volcano in Iceland, and I think by 16:09 you are showing the confidence of a local (not that many of us would know if you got it wrong). Only slightly related, but why does British Airways have the identifier "Speedbird"? Isn't it just as easy to say British Airways or BA? Thanks in advance.

[@MJ-vq3ws]

The Speedbird was the logo and callsign for BA's predecessor, BOAC. When BOAC and BEA merged to form BA, the call sign was retained. The Speedbird symbol has evolved into the Speed Marque, which is the red stripe by the airlines name on the fuselage.

[@RCAvhstape]

@@MJ-vq3ws It certainly sounds cooler than most alternatives.

[@johnopalko5223]

Similar to how Republic Airways uses the "Brickyard" identifier. They're headquartered in Indianapolis and the Speedway's nickname is "The Brickyard."

[@CoasterMan13Official]

Can you do a video on the limelight club in Atlanta?

[@MarshOakDojoTimPruitt]

thanks

[@dziban303]

Modern geostationary weather satellites are capable of detecting both volcanic ash clouds and sulfur dioxide plumes emitted from volcanoes, using their infrared imagers. Polar orbiting weather satellites can do the same and at higher resolution, but with much more intermittent coverage. Machine learning techniques are being used to spot and characterize these plumes automatically and alert human forecasters at the VAACs and elsewhere, so warnings can be issued. The geostationary sats take a new image of the entire hemisphere in view every ten minutes, allowing warnings to go out right away. The entire globe is covered. Very cool

[@DrivermanO]

What was the relevance of the Tristar (or was it a DC10?) at 15 minutes in?

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

That is a DC-10 that was disabled by falling ash after the 1991 eruption of Mt. Pinatubo.

[@SirenaSpades]

That's incredible

[@terryjohnson4824]

who or what made you remove the shells that were behind you

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

I just shift stuff around the set sometimes. They'll rotate back in eventually.

[@BenjySparky]

THG you rock! I couldn't have even started to say the name of that volcano. It looks like they threw a bunch of random letters together and said yeah that's how you say it! Lol. Peace

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

Eyjafjallajökull

[@BenjySparky]

@@TheHistoryGuyChannel yeah this 👆 Lol. Peace 😂🤣

[@Svensk7119]

"All four engines have failed." One of the passengers turned that into a book. The plane looked like it had been sand-blasted. The passengers are now The Galagung Gliding Club.

[@Ulani101]

A wide-body passenger aircraft with all engines out of action sounds remarkably terrifying for anyone on board: especially the poor bugger flying it. To quote one of my favourite fictional characters, "Let's see if this b*st*rd can fly."

[@LMacNeill]

Fun drinking game -- take a drink every time The History Guy says Eyjafjallajökull. 😁😂 Seriously, I never could've done that. Good work! 🙂

[@RCAvhstape]

The captain of Speedbird 9 made the most British announcement ever.

[@malcoexclamation]

On 30 June 1982, I traveled on a holiday from Perth, Australia to Frankfurt, Germany, via Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This was my first journey outside the Southern Hemisphere. During the first few hours of the flight out of Perth, the captain of the flight mentioned that they were diverting around a volcanic eruption. At the time, I thought nothing much of it, just one of the interesting parts of flying. Many years later, I learned of the flight of BA 009 and the harrowing experience of its descent, without paying much attention to the date. At some point later, I put the two events together, and realized I was within a week of flying the same route. I guess back then, we played Russian Roulette with ash clouds. Scary stuff.

[@patrickmazza7055]

I am impressed by History Guy’s ability to pronounce nearly unpronounceable Icelandic volcano names. 😊

[@ccubsfan94]

My favorite part is the procedure for encountering it. First is to get out of it or turn around. Get on approach to the nearest airport Then the best part Open the window and fly by looking out the quartering side window to land. That's if your plane has operable windows.

[@winglessviper]

I was on my way to do my second tour in Korea. Got stuck in LA for a week because of the erupting AK volcano. Still don't know why we weren't put on a flt to HI then to Japan. That was Jan 1990.

[@naturelvr123]

You're right. "History Worth Remembering". :)

[@kennethmc2601]

I was in Sigonella Sicily last year with a C-40, Mt Etna erupted the night before we were scheduled to fly out. We sat on our hotel roof in Catania for many hours just watching it light up in the distance wondering "are we still leaving tomorrow?" It erupts often, so we thought nothing of it until many of the locals joined us on the same rooftop to watch. Luckily the wind was on our side and we left.