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NEWS > EVERYONE ELSE > ALL THREE PLANES IN FINNISH AIR FORCE GROUNDED BY VOLCANIC ASH
ALL THREE PLANES IN FINNISH AIR FORCE GROUNDED BY VOLCANIC ASH
April 20 2010
Helsinki, Finland – The Winter War was unlike any other in human history. The story is not unique, it is in fact a very old tale of David Vs Goliath, but the sheer route that the Finnish forces were able to accomplish shame even that great tale. An 
underpowered military going against one of the most formidable fighting forces ever assembled the battle seemed like a route for Soviet forces but in the end, with five times as many Soviet troops dead, five times as many captured, and a more than 10:1 ratio in the number of tanks lost the war did turn into a route, for the Finns.
There is no doubt that that war was the peak of Finnish military history which has been, unlike her European siblings, quite underwhelming. In recent years, Finland has come to be known less as a military power and rather a nation with a lot of snow and people who talk funny. Still, that war brings lot of pride to the people of Finland even if their military prowess has been a little degraded in recent years. Now one more blow to the pride of the Finnish people has been directed at their military forces as the air force admitted that their jet and both biplanes had been damaged by the volcanic ash covering Europe.
“Based on the pictures, it was discovered that even short flights in ash dust may 
cause significant damage to an airplane's engine. Blockages of ventilation channels caused by melting ash lead engine components to overheat and material to weaken,” said the Finnish Defence Force from its headquarters at the Helsinki Hilton. “This could fracture rotating parts and weaken components which could cause parts to detach and the engine to be destroyed. We have taken the planes to be repaired and we expect that they will be flyable but we have elected to stay grounded until this ash cloud dissipates and it is safe to fly again.”
The Finnish air force has two F-18 Hornets, one in flying condition, which were purchased after the release of ‘Independence Day’ in 1996 which air force found ‘really cool’.
“When people think of volcanoes they think of lava and explosions destroying villages 
but rarely do we think of the ancillary consequences, much like what has happened in Europe. The disruption to traffic and commerce has been tremendous and could do as much if not more damage than if the volcano had simply erupted and spewed lava. This is the real danger of these events,” said Scrape TV Military analyst Michael Kent. “And now we see one more dramatic consequence of these events. The entire Finnish air force sits on the ground, leaving the country totally vulnerable to attack by a foreign power. While air forces across Europe have rightly remained grounded, Finland decided to patrol the skies and they have now risked their long term security, particularly if it takes a long time to get these planes up and running again.”
The biplanes are expected to be repaired first with the single F-18 potentially taking months to fly again.
“The Finns are a great people with a great history and it would be a real shame to see all that wiped out because they decided to ignore warnings and stay flying. It’s admirable but it was also a little misguided considering the fact that they are not actively at war,” continued Kent. “Of course now would be the perfect time for a foreign power to strike. I’m sure Russia would like a little payback so we might yet see something happen.”
Finland’s seven tanks are apparently in perfect working order.
Emil Uliya, International Correspondent
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