A family on board a Ryanair flight delayed so long a young girl suffered a “panic attack” have lashed out at the airline and are demanding thousands in compensation.
The family, from sunny Majorca in Spain, had boarded one of the low-cost carrier’s planes just over a week ago for an evening flight home from Dublin.
Their booking, on Ryanair flight FR9187, had been set to leave Dublin at 6.25pm on August 15.
But the family of four were still on the tarmac some four hours later.
Their booking, on Ryanair flight FR9187, had been set to leave Dublin at 6.25pm (file photo)
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FR9187 didn’t end up taking off until 10.40pm – with the airline pointing to local air traffic controllers’ ruling that conditions in Spain were too poor for the craft to land safely in Palma de Majorca.
The family – mother and father Maria del Mar Vives Miro and Pere Josep Bueno Bauza, and their two young sons, Pau and Marc – had been among those stranded out of reach of the terminal.
They slated their time on the tarmac, claiming there was “not enough food or drink” for passengers aboard FR9187, and have now filed an extensive compensation claim totalling some €1,600 (£1,350).
And the four-hour delay wasn’t just an inconvenience.
MORE FLIGHT HELL:
The family slated their time on the tarmac, claiming there was “not enough food or drink” (file photo)
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The family claimed the situation on board prompted panic among other travelling families – especially those with small children – while Ryanair noted that two passengers became “disruptive” and required a police escort off the plane.
Bauza said a small girl sitting near the family of would-be flyers suffered a panic attack during the wait, adding: “It was a distressing moment for everyone”.
The flight eventually made its way to Majorca without issue – but it didn’t arrive in the Balearic city until the small hours, coming into land at 2.30am on August 16.
The family were then forced to take a taxi to their home in Majorca – where local bus services don’t run from the airport across a stretch of nighttime in which the plane had landed.
A Ryanair spokesman said: “This flight from Dublin to Palma was delayed ahead of take-off due to Spanish ATC’s decision to block inbound aircraft from arriving to Palma de Majorca Airport due to ‘weather’.
The flight eventually made its way to Majorca without issue – but didn’t arrive until 2.30am (file photo)
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“Passengers remained on board during the delay in order to be ready to depart as soon as Palma re-opened for inbound flights, however this took longer than initially expected,” they told the Olive Press.
“After 45 minutes, crew opened the bars on board so that passengers could access snacks and refreshments, which they can claim back receipted expenses for at ryanair.com.
“This flight was then further delayed after two passengers became disruptive onboard.
“Crew requested Garda assistance and these disruptive passengers were removed from the aircraft before it departed for Palma following a short delay.
“We sincerely apologise to passengers for this ATC delay which was entirely beyond our control.”
Source Agencies
