So day 2 of flights cancelled.....

[1 21 Gigawatts]

Yeah man, I feel for these guys! 3 weeks offshore is a long time, but then to be told the heli's are cancelled?!? If I were the volcano I'd be watching my back now ;)

"If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough" ~ Albert Einstein "If you think it's expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur." ~ Paul Neal "Red" Adair

[OriginalGriff]

I don't want to worry you, but they said on the news that when an Icelandic volcano erupted in the 19th Century, the eruption lasted over 2 years... Hopefully that won't happen here - but it may be worth getting down to the gym and practising on the rowing machine, just in case...

You should never use standby on an elephant. It always crashes when you lift the ears. - Mark Wallace C/C++ (I dont see a huge difference between them, and the 'benefits' of C++ are questionable, who needs inheritance when you have copy and paste) - fat_boy

[1 21 Gigawatts]

Dan_Martin wrote:

Well, perhaps it's because if the plane flies into ash the engines will stop and the plane will crash

Heheh, yeah I know. I mean I'm missing my birthday present (trip to see a comedian live) that has been booked for 6 months, but I'd rather be delayed than dead. But there's always someone who moans - mind you they'd moan even more if the planes were flying and some crashed! :)

"If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough" ~ Albert Einstein "If you think it's expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur." ~ Paul Neal "Red" Adair

[DaveAuld]

OriginalGriff wrote:

I don't want to worry you

Doesn't worry me! a) I will quite happily take the delay payments! :omg: :drools at the thought of it: b) Peace from the wife!:thumbsup: c) Peace from the daughters! :thumbsup: although after a while i dare say the daughters would get upset, having me away for 2 weeks at a time is long enough for them.:thumbsdown:

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[peterchen]

These people are (f)actually right - they don't understand why they can't fly. Their fallacy is assuming what they don't understand must not exist (or, at least, is someone elses fault).

Agh! Reality! My Archnemesis![^]
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[Electron Shepherd]

daveauld wrote:

What about the thousands of people who work on the oil platforms/rigs in the North Sea? What about the guys who have been on these platforms for over 3 weeks now? and no sign of getting home yet?

Why does this affect them? I thought the problem was that the ash gets into the turbines at jet cruising altitude, not at helicopter transfer altitude? Can you not fly the transfer helicopters at more or less sea level?

Server and Network Monitoring

[OriginalGriff]

Probably H&S regulations: Closed airspace means closed airspace regardless of cruising height.

You should never use standby on an elephant. It always crashes when you lift the ears. - Mark Wallace C/C++ (I dont see a huge difference between them, and the 'benefits' of C++ are questionable, who needs inheritance when you have copy and paste) - fat_boy

[DaveAuld]

We thought the same, but basically if the airspace is closed to non-emergency traffic, then you have got to go with that. I also guess that there is risk if the helicopters passed through rain showers, and the rain had ash particles, then it would be game over.

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[Lost User]

I didn't realise the ash was low enough to affect heli flights. Bummer :(

Join the cool kids - Come fold with us[^]

[KenBonny]

Isn't there a possibility to get off the rig by boat? Would it take longer to get the boat to your rig than to wait out the ashstorm and get a helicopter? And a personal question I have: what is a programmer doing on a rig in the middle of the sea if you have internet access? Make the app from home and send it to the guys.

[Lost User]

Well they don't have much of a glide angle so best be careful.

Join the cool kids - Come fold with us[^]

[DaveAuld]

KenBonny wrote:

Isn't there a possibility to get off the rig by boat

I dare say that if this was to go on for a week or so then yes, this would have to be looked at, however there are other risks associated with that, i.e. you would have to be lifted to the boat by crane, and the cranes are not certified for man riding.

KenBonny wrote:

And a personal question I have: what is a programmer doing on a rig in the middle of the sea if you have internet access? Make the app from home and send it to the guys.

Well, programming is not my job, it is more an interest. My job is the boss of the platform (see my profile), and the one that has to deal with all the headaches that come out of events like this!

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[KenBonny]

daveauld wrote:

My job is the boss of the platform

Aah, all the joys of management. :) Hope you can keep those ruffians in control.

daveauld wrote:

certified for man riding

I'll pretend I got that in the way you meant. :D

[0x3c0]

In related news, the strikes against British Airways have been having a massive impact < /sarcasm> It must really annoy union bosses that their meticulously co-ordinated strike has been squashed flat by a single volcano.

OSDev :)

[sriharsha_12]

flying machines have the problem, what about floating machines:confused:

[DaveAuld]

sriharsha_12 wrote:

what about floating machines

Can't get down onto the floating machines, the cranes on the platform are not certified for carrying personnel. You could only do this in an emergency.

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[Dan Neely]

daveauld wrote:

What about the guys who have been on these platforms for over 3 weeks now? and no sign of getting home yet? Those are the people I Feel sorry for! I have a few on my platform, and you can see depression and frustration creeping in. If this goes on much longer, it could turn nasty!

If it lasts long enough the people who're supposed to replace them might be in a bigger mess of suckage. Stuck on shore means not working; and, I assume, not getting paid.

3x12=36 2x12=24 1x12=12 0x12=18

[MidwestLimey]

A helicopter's glide angle is essentially 90. On engine out, presuming the blades aren't terribly damaged, it could autorotate into the north sea with perhaps a decent of 1k+ ft/m. If the blades seize or are damaged then you're flying in a rock, your decent is then governed by gravity, altitude and terminal velocity.

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modified on Friday, April 16, 2010 11:33 AM

[MidwestLimey]

daveauld wrote:

My job is the boss of the platform (see my profile), and the one that has to deal with all the headaches that come out of events like this!

So what you're saying is, should this carry on for more than a week, you'll be the one tossed in the north sea?

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[MidwestLimey]

Good luck to you, I'm counting my blessings. Spent 3 weeks back home and flew back across the pond on Monday. Had thought of taking longer but decided against taking unpaid leave since I've got number 3 on the way and a new house to build. Rather glad I did.

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