Passengers on an easyJet flight from Manchester to Antalya were told to leave the runway just 10 minutes before their scheduled departure on Friday (August 28), and the replacement flight later diverted to Milan after the crew reached its legal duty-time limit.
Holidaymakers aboard the service, which had been due to depart at 7.45am, eventually took off around 12pm after a wait of over four hours following the sourcing of a replacement crew, the Manchester Evening News understands. However, once airborne, passengers were informed the flight would need to divert to Milan, as the crew could not legally continue working.
Passengers stranded in Milan
Those on board — a group said to consist largely of families with young children — were taken to Milan Airport, more than 1,200 miles short of their intended destination. Each passenger has been issued with a €25 food voucher while they await a fresh crew, who are reportedly travelling from Manchester Airport and expected to arrive at approximately 7.30 local time (6.30pm GMT).
EasyJet has stated that the original flight was delayed owing to air traffic control restrictions brought about by severe weather conditions across Europe, and that the resulting delay would have caused the crew to breach their legally permitted working hours, prompting a stopover in Milan to facilitate a crew change.
Passenger describes ordeal
James Lanson, travelling with his wife and two-year-old daughter, spoke to the Manchester Evening News while awaiting yet another replacement flight. "It's been unbelievably difficult with our toddler," he said. "She hasn't eaten, she can't understand what's going on. There's no facilities in this airport for her or any of the other kids. I used to work as a prison officer and the prison that I used to work in kept the prisoners in better condition."
He described how passengers were taken to the aircraft by coach but the doors did not open, and the driver said the pilot had called in sick. "So me, being a scouser, I thought it was a little bit of humour and he was gonna say he was joking and tell us to have a good holiday. But no, he drove us back to the terminal and they said they were trying to source us a new pilot."
Lanson said the family had expected to arrive at 12pm and have a full day at their destination. "We were due to get there at 12pm. We thought we'd get there nice and early and have a full day there today. So it's a great start to the holiday, which was meant to be seven days and is now going to be six days."
Weather claim questioned
Speaking from Milan Airport, Lanson said easyJet staff informed passengers the delay was the result of adverse weather conditions and air traffic control restrictions. He questioned the explanation, noting that planes had been landing in Antalya all day and that a Jet2 flight which took off just before their scheduled departure had landed in Antalya a couple of hours earlier.
He also criticised the €25 voucher, saying the only place it could be used in the small airport was a Pret outlet, where queues were enormous. He revealed his two-year-old child had not eaten since 8am, with the Pret outlet increasingly struggling to keep up with demand for food.
EasyJet confirmed the flight was delayed owing to air traffic control restrictions brought about by poor weather conditions across Europe, adding that the delay would have caused the crew to breach their legally permitted working hours, prompting the decision to arrange a crew change in Milan. According to the Manchester Evening News, the aircraft is set to be refuelled before continuing its journey on to Antalya.
An easyJet spokesperson said: "We are sorry for any inconvenience this will have caused and did all we could to minimise the impact of the disruption. The safety and wellbeing of our customers and crew is always easyJet's highest priority."
