On the 20th March 2010 something that would prove significant in the preceding months was happening. In deepest, darkest Iceland a volcano named Eyjafjallajokull erupted. This was the first eruption to occur since 1823, but of course at the time we didn’t need the skies. Today, there is a heavy reliance on air travel. The availability and affordability of modern aviation means that everyone can fly. If the choice is between a 6 hour train and a, less expensive, 1 hour flight,; many will choose the latter.

After a brief break the Volcano erupted again on the 14th April 2010. This eruption was more explosive in nature and threw volcanic ash kilometres into the air. This led to major air travel disruption in the North-West Europe. Several countries declared that this made air travel unsafe, including the United Kingdom, and closed their airspace. From 15thof April to the 21st of April there was major disruptions. This was unprecedented and hurt the travel industry hard, not to mention the wider economy.

In proceeding months the ash cloud has persistently remained in the atmosphere. Therefore there have been further airspace and individual airport shut-downs, and it has even spread to South-West Europe; hitting Spain, Portugal, and Italy.

So does their need to be a change of behaviour that we are not over-reliant on air travel (and transportation in general)? The alternatives are well-known and people should make the effort to test them so that their contingency plan is there if they are caught short.

Of course, the ‘old fashioned’ telephone is the primary alternative. Most people today couldn’t live without telephones. If there is someone who has never used a telephone I have yet to meet them. However if you want to talk to multiple parties you must use a conference call solution. There are many people who have had no experience with conference calls. It is important to understand that conference calls have moved forward in terms of functionality. Today, you can do all sorts of things to make the experience more personal. You can use a live video, you can share files while you’re chatting, you can schedule calls, and you can even make calls over your existing internet line for free.

At the moment travel is uncertain and it’s important to investigate contingency arrangements and see how technology can help you.

James King has been working in the business services industry for over 15 years. He enjoys writing about business, technology and especially conference call facilities.