Wire Düsseldorf, IFMSA & NFDA Participants Finally Fly Home After Being Stranded by Volcano

April 24

00:00 2010

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Wire Düsseldorf, IFMSA & NFDA Participants Finally Fly Home After Being Stranded by Volcano

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Participants in Wire 2010 in Düsseldorf, Germany, and the National Fastener Distributors Association spring conference in San Antonio were stranded away from home due to the April 15 volcano in Iceland.

Several finally returned home on April 22.
An erupting volcano in Iceland sent an ash cloud over Europe, paralyzing trans-Atlantic flights since April 15. More than 95,000 flights were canceled during the biggest flight disruptions since 9/11.

Ray Zirkle and Doug Zirkle and other exhibitors and members of the International Fastener Machinery & Suppliers Association were stranded in Düsseldorf, Germany. The show ran from April 12 to April 16.

Zirkle said several IFMSA members chose to call on customers in Europe while waiting for the air travel ban to be lifted. A group of others drove to Rome to catch flights back to North America.

Zirkle said flights were “touch and go” and he didn’t know if he’d get on a flight when he went to the Düsseldorf airport to wait for a standby seat on a 6 a.m. flight on April 22.

“At least we had a clean bed at Holiday Inn,” Zirkle said.

Fastener Technology International editor Mike McNulty also returned on the 22nd. “It was quite an experience,” McNulty said of the extended trip.

Wire 2010 ran from April 12 to 16. IFMSA met in conjunction with the Wire show.
There were 147 fastener manufacturing-related exhibiting companies at Wire 2010. Overall there were 1,223 exhibiting companies.

Geoff Hopwood and Bernd Stapf of the European Fastener Distributors Association arrived at the April 14-16 NFDA spring conference in San Antonio just ahead of volcano.

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