‘Sick’ passengers were stuck on a plane in Gran Canaria ahead of a flight to Manchester for three hours after a ‘nightmare’ holiday.
David Galloway and his partner Bev were supposed to fly out to Cape Verde on December 20, but the TUI flight was cancelled the night before. David, who turned 58 that night, found out while out for a birthday meal with his partner, 54.
He says the cancellation, which he was told was due to weather conditions on the West African island, left Bev ‘in tears’. Unable to fly out to Cape Verde for two days, they changed their plans and flew out to Gran Canaria in the early hours of December 21.
The couple, from Rotherham in South Yorkshire, were due to fly back to Manchester today (December 27) but Bev was unwell and had to see a doctor, who said she may have food poisoning. They decided to take the TUI flight, which was supposed to depart at 2.30pm.
But after boarding the plane, passengers were told that flight had been delayed due to foggy conditions at Manchester Airport, according to Dave. The adverse weather in Greater Manchester has caused disruption to all flights in and out of the airport.
Dave and Bev were stuck on the plane for three hours, with passengers told they could not leave. Ambulance worker Dave said: “We have had a nightmare of a holiday. We went away to de-stress and are coming back worse than when we went.
“I have had a very stressful time at work on an ambulance, dealing with some bad jobs and work related stress, plus erratic hours. We really needed a stress-free holiday.”
Speaking as they waited on the runway, Dave added: “My partner is unwell may have food poisoning and it could possibly be viral, so others are at risk, just as we are at risk from other passengers. Many people are coughing and getting agitated.”
In an audio recording shared with the Manchester Evening News, passengers were heard cheering as airline staff announced at around 5.10pm the flight was preparing to take off. Passengers first boarded the flight around three hours earlier.
TUI has been contacted for comment. A Manchester Airport spokesperson confirmed they have experienced delays as a result of fog, but added in most instances these have been ‘short’.
They said: “Like most airports across the country, we have experienced some delays as a result of fog. In most instances these delays have been short and have not caused disruption to our schedule.
“Passengers due to travel should prepare as normal and aim to arrive at the airport in line with their airline’s advice – this is usually two hours ahead of a short haul flight and three hours ahead of a long haul flight.”
