Passengers on an easyJet flight from Manchester to Antalya were left more than 1,200 miles from their destination after their flight was cancelled and later diverted to Milan. The flight, originally scheduled to depart at 7.45am, was delayed due to air traffic control restrictions caused by adverse weather across Europe, which meant the crew would have exceeded its legally permitted hours.
Delays and Diversion
Passengers said they were told to leave the runway just 10 minutes before the flight was due to depart. After a replacement crew was found, the plane eventually took off at around 12pm. However, while in the air, passengers were informed the aircraft would be diverted to Milan, where a third crew would take over for the final leg to Antalya, because the second crew had reached its legal duty-time limit during the flight.
The plane, which passengers said was largely made up of families with young children, landed at Milan Airport. Those on board were given a €25 food voucher while waiting for a new crew, who were reportedly travelling from Manchester Airport to meet them at around 7.30pm local time (6.30pm GMT).
Passenger Reaction
James Lanson, travelling with his wife and two-year-old daughter, described the delays as "unbelievably difficult." 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."
Mr Lanson added that the family was due to arrive at 12pm and expected to have a full day at their destination. He said the holiday, meant to be seven days, would now be six. He also noted that the €25 voucher could only be used at a Pret outlet in the small airport, which had long queues and was running out of food.
Airline Response
EasyJet said the initial delay was due to air traffic control restrictions caused by adverse weather across Europe, and the stop in Milan was arranged to allow the crew to be replaced. The aircraft is expected to be refuelled and continue 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."
