Eamonn Delaney said passengers were offered a €4 voucher during the eight hour delay after bad weather hit
Man slams Ryanair after eight hour wait for 50 minute flight(Image: Nicholas.T.Ansell/PA Wire)
A holidaymaker who was delayed for over eight hours said there was “no communication whatsoever” from Ryanair. Eamonn Delaney was due to fly from Ireland West Airport to Liverpool after visiting Ireland for the Galway Poker Festival.
Eamonn, who lives in Wigan, left his accommodation in Galway earlier than planned to allow time for poor road conditions caused by freezing temperatures. But his flight, which was scheduled to leave Knock at 9am, didn’t leave the runway until 5.20pm yesterday evening (January 7), due to ‘de-icing’ issues at Liverpool John Lennon Airport.
The 59-year-old told the ECHO: “I checked the Ryanair app at about 5.20am and it said it would be on time. And then it changed from 9am to 10.05am. And from there, all day it just kept getting delayed more and more.”
Aside from the delay updates, Eamonn claims there was “no communication whatsoever” from Ryanair regarding the reason for the delays. He said: “Ryanair staff came through to board other flights which left no problem. Stanstead, Birmingham and Gatwick flights all left on time. There was a three hour window where there were no Ryanair staff around. There was no communication whatsoever the whole day.”
Ryanair claims almost 20 communications were sent out to passengers on the delayed flight, with updates also supplied through the airline’s app. After around four hours had passed, Eamonn said there was a “muffled” announcement, allowing those on the delayed flight to Liverpool to get a voucher worth up to four euros.
Eamonn continued: “You couldn’t even buy a cup of coffee with it. I got a croissant and a cup of tea and it was 7.90 euro or something like that. Surely if you’ve been delayed more than six hours, they could just give us another cup of tea or something. It’s just the principle of having to pay 17.99 euro for a little piece of lasagne when you’ve been delayed for eight hours. It just doesn’t seem right.”
After finally boarding the plane eight hours after their departure time, Eamonn said he had to wait a further 50 minutes so staff could de-ice the plane. “By the time it had been de-iced they had to do it all again because it started snowing again,” he added.
“It was just a shocking experience really. Shocking communication. There was no option to get a hotel or anything like that. The biggest issue was lack of communication and lack of providing anything for the customers waiting. I felt sorry for the older people because there was no food, not even a cup of tea or anything.”
As the hours passed, the passengers headed for Liverpool were the “only people left” in the airport. Eamonn said: “Because we were there for so long we got to know each other. There was only a few of us.
“I felt really sorry for some of the older people because they weren’t aware of what to do and there was no one around to help. It could have been a lot easier with better communication. I know some of it couldn’t be helped but the Ryanair staff could have come through and explained to us what was going on, and offered us something to eat after waiting for eight hours.”
To add insult to injury, Eamonn was hit with an extra charge at Long Stay Liverpool Airport because wasn’t back in time, meaning he had to pay an extra £15 to get out of the car park. “It was not a great experience,” he added.
A spokesperson for Ryanair said: “This flight from Knock to Liverpool (7 Jan) was delayed due to an unexpected runway closure at Liverpool Airport as a result of heavy snow. Passengers booked on this flight received almost 20 communications via email, SMS and PUSH, and received subsequent updates via the Ryanair app.
“Passengers were notified of the diversion, advised of their options, and issued with refreshment vouchers. Ryanair sincerely apologises for any inconvenience caused as a result of this runway closure at Liverpool Airport, which is entirely beyond our control.”
A spokesperson for Liverpool JLA said: “Yesterday was challenging with heavy snow early in the morning followed by short bursts of sleet, snow and hail throughout the day making conditions for de-icing difficult. The airport itself opened its runway and taxiways for operational use just after 10am after a concerted effort to reopen after the weather overnight.
“Safety is our number one priority and the airport and will only ever re-open when it is absolutely certain that all necessary surfaces are in an appropriate condition for operations to recommence.
“With regards to the parking issue and additional costs incurred, it is the airport policy to waive any additional parking fees incurred due to delays caused by bad weather and Mr Delaney can contact our customer services team with his details in order to arrange the relevant refund.”