easyJet to Trial “Ash Radar”

easyJet believes it has found a breakthrough to avoiding further widespread ash cloud disruption by investing £1 million in 'ash radars' which are said to accurately detect volcanic ash from aircraft.

The airline is working closely with the CAA, Airbus and the Norwegian Institute for Research (NILU), the inventors of the system, 'AVOID', which is based on an infra-red light detection system and is claimed to detect levels of ash up to 100kms away from an aircraft, giving pilots time to divert.

The target is to fit 'ash radars' into the tail fins of 12 of their jets by the end of this year in a mass trial.

Speaking at a press conference this morning, easyJet CEO Andy Harrison said that the technology "still has to be proven first" from the regulatory authorities. The infra-red technology has been around for over 20 years.

The radar produces pilots with real time and accurate maps on where the volcanic ash is, similar to how thunderstorms are detected and avoided by pilots on a regular basis using weather maps, Harrison said.

Andrew Haines, Chief Executive of the Civil Aviation Authority explained that the main problem for airlines is the lack of available information on what is a safe amount of ash cloud and he commended the efforts of easyJet and is supporting the development, but assured that there is still a lot of work to be done. "It's the most exciting innovation we have seen but it still needs to go through the right safety processes. It is essential that all parties come together to identify new solutions."

Harrison added: "We want to provide the ash cloud data to the authorities, and the biggest challenge will be getting the European authorities to work out what do with this data. But I expect this technology to work and I hope other airlines will also adopt it."

Louise Driscoll reports from easyJet's press conference in Millbank, London