Unpredictable weather leaves hundreds stranded as Storm Isha disrupts European flights

Storm Isha is slowly leaving mainland Europe, but has left hundreds of passengers stranded across Europe. Airlines scratched their heads with the dozens of cancellations, diversions and go-arounds. What is normally a quick way to get you from point A to point B, became a frustrating ordeal for passengers. 

A glaring example of the challenges posed by unpredictable weather is the saga of Ryanair flight FR633 on January 21, travelling from Copenhagen, Denmark, to Dublin, Ireland. The pilots, facing gusty and unfavourable winds, had to divert the Boeing 737-800 (registered EI-EBD) to Manchester, United Kingdom, as landing in Dublin proved impossible.

After spending four hours on the ground in Manchester, the aircraft took to the skies again for a second attempt to land in Dublin. Unfortunately, the weather gods were unrelenting, forcing the pilots to divert once more — this time to Liverpool, approximately 50 km from Manchester.

The plight of the passengers on this particular flight raises a pressing question: How did they eventually reach their intended destination of Dublin?

Meanwhile, a new depression is heading towards the United Kingdom and Europe. It does not yet carry an official name, but if the British MET service assigns one, the storm will be called “Jocelyn“.

Paris instead of Dublin
Ryanair FR555 flight from Manchester was also forced to divert. Instead of landing at Dublin International Airport, which had already issued a public warning about possible flight cancellations, delays and a stream of aborted landings, the flight instead turned and landed almost 500 miles away at Paris Beauvais in France.