A British family returning from a holiday in Cancun, Mexico, found themselves stranded in the small town of Gander, Newfoundland, after their Tui flight to Manchester Airport was diverted due to an unruly passenger. The Boeing 787-9 was forced to land in the Canadian town early Friday morning after a man exhibited aggressive and alarming behavior mid-flight.
Disruptive Passenger Causes Diversion
Oliver Stockford, the father of the family, recounted that the man was seated directly behind his daughters and made several attempts to exit the aircraft during the flight. He also made disturbing comments about a man with a knife, frightening other passengers, many of whom were children. Crew members, with the help of a doctor, managed to subdue the individual. However, as the plane neared the Pacific Ocean, the pilot decided to divert to Canada to remove the passenger. Stockford noted that the man's wife later attributed his behavior to diazepam purchased from a taxi driver in Mexico.
Chaos on Board
Stockford described the scene: "The plane landed quite firm, he tried to get up, Tui staff shouted 'sit back down, now!' and kids behind us were crying, thinking they were going to die." He added that children were asking, "Why do I feel like I'm dying, Mummy?" The family, along with nearly 400 passengers, disembarked in Gander, where the pilot assured they would be looked after.
Stranded in Cold Weather
Upon arrival, passengers faced several issues. Stockford said, "We entered a country at 3C having been in a 32C country. We had shorts on, T-shirts, babies weren't wrapped up." The family encountered slow transport to hotels booked by Tui, and upon arrival, they were told their room was only available for less than four hours. Hotels in the town were reportedly fully booked due to a large event.
Stockford explained: "On the plane the captain said they were going to provide us with transport to a hotel, a free hotel, food and drink. We queued for a transfer, a 12-seater crooked old school bus. With 360 passengers, it took time. We tried to ring a taxi, but there were only three taxi companies in Gander, population 12,000. The taxi couldn't take us because they had no car seat for the baby. We eventually got on the bus, arrived three hours later, and the hotel staff told us we only had the room for four hours."
Return to Airport
After returning to the airport on Friday, passengers were told it would take another 14 hours before they could depart for home. Most had to sleep on the floor of Gander Airport with limited food, drink, and clothing, as their luggage remained on the plane. Stockford said news of their diversion spread to locals, who stepped in to help Brits travel around town to shop for essentials. Gander has a history of supporting stranded travelers, including during 9/11, which inspired the musical Come From Away.
Stockford noted: "Loads of locals flooded in and helped everyone get back to the airport. We got a lift back for free. Then we had to spend 14 hours with 360 passengers on the floors of the airport. Children sleeping on the floors, families on the floors because there were not enough seats." The flight was originally due to land at Manchester Airport around 7:15 am on Friday, June 5, but the family did not arrive home until Saturday, June 6.
Aftermath and Criticism
Stockford, a business owner, said the incident has left his children traumatized and resulted in lost earnings for him and his wife. "My daughters are nervous now to fly again because of the situation," he said. "Tui from the start of being diverted to the end, just completely failed us." Tui has been approached for comment.
