Flight ban lifted

This wonderful website shows air traffic and includes information on the flight's departure/arrival points, altitude and call sign. It's interesting just now because it's showing the the first flights vectoring in to Heathrow and Gatwick, as the flight ban is lifted, are coming in from across the Atlantic. This isn't local traffic hopping over from Europe but flights which took off more than six hours ago. Perhaps I'm being cynical but I wonder whether the sudden collapse of the ban and change in the safety advice might have been hastened by pressure from the big carriers and the airports.

Of course now the government have ships of the Royal Navy and a fleet of coaches haring around Europe. There was probably a good deal of positive publicity possible in the PM welcoming holidaymakers as they came down the gangway off HMS Albion (think back to when HMS Hermes came back from the Falklands) but Gordon won't be dashing to Southampton now.

I suppose the election can now retake it's position as the leading news story. Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war.