| Summary: | International aviation guidelines suggest complete avoidance of ash-contaminated airspace due to its hazardous impact on aircrafts and jet engines. In 2010, however, the eruption of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano memorably demonstrated the limits of this precautionary approach: Forecasted volcanic ash in one of the most densely populated airspaces in the world caused unprecedented economic and societal impacts. It forced the European aviation community to perform a paradigm shift virtually overnight in an attempt to mitigate the damage. While the global air traffic volume is increasing, so too is, according to latest research, the volcanic activity in Iceland. This research examines the current level of preparedness of the European aviation network for a larger volcanic eruption and introduces practical measures to improve risk management. The network comprises global, international and national regulators, crisis coordination and network managers, providers of information on weather and ash, and engines, as well as air navigation service providers and aircraft operators. The stakeholder performance is analyzed on both an individual and group level and demonstrates how risk management has improved since 2010. To test the network’s procedures in light of a larger volcanic eruption, two extreme scenarios of volcanic ash eruptions were developed and explored with the stakeholders. To strengthen risk management and societal resilience to such events, the research formulates improvement measures relating to contingency planning, improved exercises, staffing, communication, research funding and regulatory alignment. The study stresses the need to expand the network to other modes of transportation, to help develop an alternative to air transportation, when airplanes are grounded for a prolonged time due to volcanic ash in the airspace. Alþjóðlegar leiðbeiningar um flugumferð leggja til að ekki sé flogið á svæði sem mengað er af gosösku vegna áhættu fyrir flugvélar og þotuhreyfla. Gosið í Eyjafjallajökli árið 2010 ...
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