Passengers flying with Aer Lingus say they were left stranded, crying and angry on Sunday after hours of delays and a cancellation.
The flight, from Belfast City Airport to London Heathrow Airport was due to leave at 5,25pm on Sunday July 24. But after starting to taxi, the captain came on to say the parking breaks had no pressure.
One passenger who was on yesterday's flight, said engineers worked for around two hours before the flight was eventually cancelled. He said it was after 7pm, and they were "hauled off the plane and sent back into to the terminal with no direction or staff help".
READ MORE: Our tool shows how likely it is your Belfast flight will be delayed
READ MORE: Eurovision Song Contest could come to Belfast as UK set to host 2023 competition
"After a chaotic three hours we were eventually sent to the Holiday Inn Plaza in taxis," he added.
"In the meantime Aer Lingus failed to pick up the phone and could not rebook flights from the check-in desks. Some people were rebooked onto flights today with no consultation - just a text message.
"One passenger was rerouted via Manchester, with a long wait on the ground there. My flight was originally book for over 24 hours later.
"I’ve never had such a bad experience in an airport despite being a frequent traveller. Sometimes flights get cancelled and these things happen, but to have no plan to help 170-odd stricken passengers caused chaos.
Travelling soon? Check the average delay of your flight using our gadget below:
"People were crying, angry, shouting having missed connection flights, some to America. There was no one around to help rebook flights, not a single passengers got through to Aer Lingus on the phone.
"Desperate customers just booked easyJet flights for the next day after getting an option to change their flight today. It took over three hours to book everyone into a hotel, you wonder what they were doing?
“I certainly won’t be flying with Aer ‘Longest’ again."
An Aer Lingus spokesperson told Belfast Live: "Aer Lingus flight EI936 operating from Belfast City Airport to London Heathrow was cancelled yesterday evening due to technical reasons. Customers impacted were provided with overnight accommodation as required and were rebooked onto next available services. We apologise to customers for the inconvenience caused."
READ NEXT:
EasyJet cabin crew in Spain to stage strikes during peak holidays
- Belfast City Airport boss says measures in place to help avoid queues and delay
Latest travel rules explained as Portugal relaxes entry restrictions
Warning to tourists over fines as new beach rule introduced in Spain
For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here. To sign up to our FREE newsletters, see here.
