The belching Icelandic volcano has grounded passengers and cargo headed in and out of Europe since Thursday.
For some Colorado companies, the eruption has stranded business travelers and products.
Colorado exports about $955 million in goods annually to a large portion of Europe, from England to Italy, said Jim Reis, chief executive of World Trade Center Denver. Of that amount, $630 million is transported by air.
Reis said medical equipment is the largest category of Colorado’s exports to Europe, followed by data storage and other computer-related items.
Reis said he hadn’t heard of specific companies that had been affected.
“It hasn’t impacted our business much, but it has impacted employees who flew in last week for a sales meeting,” said Chris Wray, spokesman for Ramtron, a Colorado Springs semiconductor firm.
“A lot of them came from the United Kingdom, and they have been unable to get home,” Wray said.
Some are waiting a couple of days before trying to rebook.
Polk Majestic Travel Group of Denver, which specializes in business travel, was busy finding new flights for clients. CEO Robert Polk described the situation as “a mess.”
The volcanic-ash-laden skies parted long enough Monday to allow Lufthansa Airlines to fly 50 planes into Germany, including its once-daily flight from Denver to Frankfurt.
United Airlines and British Airways — both of which have daily flights from Denver to London’s Heathrow Airport — were awaiting word on whether a new ash cloud would scuttle the United Kingdom’s plans to get planes into the air today.
Airline officials were trying to figure out how to address the backlog of passengers.
“We’re working through all the different scenarios,” including moving in larger-capacity planes once restrictions are lifted, said United spokesman Rahsaan Johnson.
The good news is that the situation comes between spring break and summer travel, so planes are not as full. Some passengers may delay plans or won’t rebook immediately, Johnson said.
Boyd Group International of Evergreen estimated U.S. airlines had lost nearly $80 million through Sunday because of the volcanic cloud.
Ann Schrader: 303-954-1967 or aschrader@denverpost.com
