Airline losses from ash cloud top 3 million euros
Greek airlines have suffered losses of over 3 million euros in total from the volcanic ash cloud that grounded a considerable number of flights to Europe for about a week. Although Greek air space was not affected by the ash cloud, there were 1,177 flights to and from Greek airports canceled from April 15 to 21, i.e. 589 arrivals and 588 departures, with 85,660 passengers stranded at the 10 major Greek airports. With estimates putting total losses in Greece at between 3 and 4 million euros, some 2 million euros of that concerns Aegean Airlines. Notably, the Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority said there was not a single complaint filed by the passengers who were unable to travel, with the majority of these being put up in accommodation arranged for them. European Commission data showed that the airline industry across the European Union suffered losses of between 1.5 and 2.5 billion euros.
