Airlines will be keen to see the successful tests of a new piece of equipment, designed to be fitted to aircraft, which is capable of detecting volcanic ash clouds and predict in which direction they are travelling. The Airborne Volcanic Object Imaging Detector, or AVOID, was recently taken up on a test plane over Sicily’s Mount Etna. The device uses thermal cameras to identify silicates in the atmosphere. It then combines this information with atmospheric modelling and satellite data to allow pilots to plot a course around the ash.

AVOID has been designed by Dr Fred Prata of Britain. He explained that it was able to identify clouds of ash from more than 100km away. It is also operational to over 50,000ft. Dr Prata said that his device would avoid airspace having to be closed.

Last year, airlines across Europe lost millions of pounds as airspace was closed for just under a week following the eruption of Eyjafjallajokull volcano in Iceland. Safety experts warned that large particles of ash entering jet engines could cause them to fail with disastrous results.

As scientists warn that the much larger Katla volcano may be about to erupt, the successful testing of the AVOID system becomes more urgent. The funding has been provided by budget airline easyJet, a company which claims to have lost around £50 million in 2010 after Eyjafjallajokull spewed ash into the atmosphere.

Dr Prata points out that only around two per cent of the airspace over Europe had dangerous levels of ash, and that his device would now be able to show pilots where the dangerous levels are.