Passengers on a Ryanair flight from Sofia to Birmingham Airport have described being 'treated like cattle' after their flight was delayed by around 19 hours, with no food, drink, or accommodation provided, according to those onboard. The night flight from Bulgaria to BHX, scheduled to depart shortly after 10pm on Monday, October 19, was aborted during take-off following a suspected fault with the braking system.
What followed was a nightmare for passengers, who say they were offered no food, no drinks, no accommodation and little to no updates from Ryanair. The flight included babies, young children, older people and those requiring extra help, who felt they were left abandoned at Sofia International Airport.
Disabled passenger 'left in wheelchair for 17 hours'
Among those affected was Susan Harris Bates, a 66-year-old from Melbourne in Derbyshire, who suffers from heart problems and is wheelchair-bound. She said she was 'stuck in a wheelchair for 17 hours' following the flight issues and had been left to fend for herself at Sofia Airport in the middle of the night.
She said: "It was like we were in cattle class. It was disgusting. I would spend the best part of 17 hours in my wheelchair, with no help. Fortunately, I can get out of it and walk to the toilet but some can't. It's wrong."
Ms Bates continued: "At no point did I see a Ryanair representative. There are people sleeping at the airport. Kids and babies. We had no drinks, no food either on Monday night or Tuesday. On Tuesday afternoon a number of Bulgarians at gate B11 kicked off. I understand the language and after they did so, somebody brought a bottle of water, a packet of peanuts and a chocolate croissant. A bit later we were brought a salami cob. But I was in a wheelchair for hours and am still a bit fuzzy."
Aborted take-off and abandoned at the airport
Ms Bates explained that she had been visiting her brother who lives on the other side of Bulgaria. She arrived at the airport three hours before the flight and dropped her bag off. As a wheelchair user, she had booked assistance. Initially, they said there was a slight delay of half an hour. They boarded the plane and waited another half hour for take-off.
"But the take-off was aborted while the plane was going on the runway when the pilot slammed on the brakes," she said. "We were kept on the plane for another hour and I was the last to leave. As I was taken to the terminal a Goldair [ground handling] staff member asked do you know what happened. I said the aircraft had rolled back and hit the chocks and may have damaged something. The pilot said told us the brake lights had come on during take-off."
She added: "I was taken landside in the main airport but left on my own. Nobody came up to me. I had messages from Ryanair saying what we were entitled to after two and then five hours delay. But I was left there for five hours, when a Goldair staff member could see I was upset and said 'Ryanair are not going to sort out accommodation for you'. He sat there and helped me book the Metropolitan Hotel, which I had to pay for – and he arranged transport – a shuttle bus."
The 66-year-old said she stayed just two hours at the hotel, after being told the Birmingham flight could now leave at 11am, so she had to be at the airport for 9am. "I was only a couple of hours there and the breakfast was cold. We were told the flight was 11am and to use the same boarding card. I was there at 9am and at half 10 we were told the 11am flight was postponed. I had gone through security to the boarding gate and it was moved from 11am to 12pm, from 12pm to 2pm, 2pm to 3pm and from 3pm to 4pm. Each time I was being taken up and down in a lift. Finally, they decided we were going at 5pm."
Asked whether she would fly Ryanair again, Ms Bates said: "I haven't got an option. There's no other local flights that go to Sofia. If I had an option I would not use Ryanair. It's cattle class."
Another passenger abandoned airside overnight
The husband of another passenger on the plane also contacted BirminghamLive. Darren Cleal from Stratford-upon-Avon said his wife, Lina, 34, was on the same flight, had been visiting family and had a similar, horrendous experience.
"The flight was delayed and then take-off was abandoned abruptly my wife said. It was scary. Apparently it was a brakes issue. The plane returned to the gate. They didn't let anyone off. It was carnage with angry people and panic attacks and no communication. Eventually they were let off the aircraft and they received a text to say they would be put up in a hotel, but they weren't. Nothing was arranged."
Darren continued: "They were not allowed to leave the departure area into a warm part of the airport or to get food and drink, as they would have had to come back through security and people had duty free and also feared missing the flight going. All they had was a vending machine for food. And the only plug that worked was in the toilet with everyone trying to charge their phones. There was no contingency plan. Some, around 50 per cent, left the airport and didn't come back for the flight. The passengers were getting angry as were the airport staff. I think my wife would be hard pushed to pick Ryanair again if there were other options. She felt disgusting."
The Ryanair flight eventually left Sofia shortly before 5pm and landed at Birmingham shortly after 6pm, around 17 hours after it was originally scheduled to land.
A spokeswoman for Ryanair said: "This flight from Sofia to Birmingham (19 Oct) was delayed overnight due to a minor technical issue with the aircraft. Passengers booked on this flight received communications via email and PUSH notifications. To minimise disruption, affected passengers were advised of their options and provided with overnight accommodation and transport to/from Sofia Airport. However, availability was limited and some passengers were also advised that they could also arrange individual accommodation that they could claim back receipted expenses on Ryanair.com. This flight departed for Birmingham at 16:51pm local time (October 20)."
