Passengers on their way for a sunny holiday in Portugal found themselves sleeping on an airport floor after their plane was forced to land in France.
The Ryanair flight made the unscheduled stop in Nantes after a member of the cabin crew became ill, reports the Manchester Evening News.
However, passengers were unable to continue their journey to Faro until the next day, with Ryanair blaming the “strict curfew” in Nantes.
One traveller claimed they were sat on the runway for two hours with “no access” to water before confusion over accommodation plans.
Joanne Wharton told the MEN: “At approximately midnight, the captain announced very clearly that we needed to leave the plane, go into Nantes airport and a member of staff would be there to take us to our hotel for the evening.
“When we arrived in the airport, it was entirely deserted, with no clear indication of where to find a member of support staff. I eventually found a member of staff who informed me he did not know what was going to happen and asked me to wait.”
Ms Wharton said that they finally found out that there were no hotels available other than for families with children.
“Later, the staff informed us that they were going to open a conference room upstairs in the airport and we were all to sleep in the one space together. The passengers walked up to the room, to find a pile of ‘gym mats’, which everyone took and lay on the floor with. Some blankets arrived soon after. We were entirely left to fend for ourselves,” she added.
The rescheduled flight to Faro eventually departed at around 10am the following morning and arrived at midday – meaning there was a delay of around 13 hours.
Her weekend break was ruined by the experience, said Ms Wharton, and she was left “utterly disgusted and shocked” by the way she was treated.
“I was travelling by myself and as a young female, I was traumatised by the experience. Having to ‘sleep’ in a room with approximately 200 strangers, I felt entirely unsafe,” she said.
A spokesperson for Ryanair told The Independent: “This flight from Manchester to Faro (12 May) diverted to Nantes when an operating cabin crew member became ill. The flight landed normally, and the cabin crew member disembarked, however due to the strict curfew at Nantes Airport, the flight could not continue to Faro until the following morning.
“Passengers were notified and advised of their options however as there was limited hotel availability in the area, passengers were advised to make their own arrangements and claim expenses back at Ryanair.com. Some passengers opted to stay in the airport and were provided with mattresses, blankets and refreshments.”
