Passengers allegedly passed out and threw up after being left aboard a Ryanair flight without air conditioning in extreme heat. Eva Gregory said travellers became distressed, removed their tops and suffered medical emergencies while the aircraft remained on the ground.
The 16-year-old began experiencing nausea before having a panic attack as she watched the situation unfold around her. Eva was travelling with her mum, Angela Gregory, and brother, Samuel Gregory, from Malta to Birmingham.
Delays and heat on the ground
Flight FR7268 was due to depart at 5.40am on Monday, but Eva claims it did not take off until around 7.30am. Before boarding, she claims passengers spent around 30 minutes inside a bus without air conditioning. They were then moved to a second bus, which Eva said had only limited air conditioning, for approximately another 30 minutes. Passengers then allegedly had to wait on the airstrip in the blazing heat for a further 20 minutes before finally boarding.
However, Eva claims there was still no air conditioning when they entered the aircraft. Eva, from Spondon, Derby, told NeedToKnow: “When we boarded, it was immediately obvious the air conditioning was not on.
“It was like walking into extreme heat. We got on the plane but were sitting and waiting in the heat with no air conditioning at all for over an hour. All the passengers were extremely agitated and quite quickly became frustrated. People were taking their tops off because of the heat.”
Medical emergencies and crew response
Eva says she saw two passengers lose consciousness and claimed other travellers were being sick. She added: “Two people passed out, although I’m not sure how many were throwing up. I was experiencing the feeling of needing to throw up, but as I have a phobia of being sick, it gave me a panic attack.
“The elderly people seemed extremely distressed and could potentially have experienced worse medical problems. They [the staff] didn’t even offer free bottles of water to anyone, even those experiencing medical emergencies.”
Despite the issues, Eva defended the cabin crew, claiming they had tried to stop passengers being allowed aboard until the issue had been addressed. She said: “The Ryanair cabin crew absolutely did their best. They were telling them not to let us onboard until the air conditioning was fixed.
“The other workers did not listen to the cabin crew and then the crew were the ones dealing with passengers’ anger when it was not their fault.”
Aftermath and Ryanair response
The air conditioning allegedly began working gradually after the aircraft became airborne. Eva said: “The heat and witnessing medical emergencies made me feel uneasy. The whole situation makes me feel extremely angry. I want the story to be shared and for Ryanair to fix its mistakes and stop valuing money over the passengers.”
Footage shared online by Eva showed passengers standing in the cabin as crew appeared to attend to people on board. Text over the video alleged people were “passing out, throwing up, crying and having panic attacks”. Viewers who claimed to be fellow passengers replied to the video on TikTok. Sami said: “It was horrendous.” Charlie added: “People passing out was crazy.”
A Ryanair spokesman said: "This flight from Malta to Birmingham (10 Aug) was delayed prior to departure due to a minor technical issue with the aircraft and subsequently became delayed after a passenger became ill onboard. Following an inspection of the aircraft by engineers, the aircraft was cleared to operate, and this flight departed Malta at 19:00pm local."
