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Daily Record
Daily Record
National
Claire Galloway

Jet2 passengers stranded in Cyprus after Glasgow flight cancelled without notice

Scottish Jet2 passengers were left stranded in Cyprus after their Glasgow bound flight was cancelled without notice.

The flight, which was due to depart from Larnaca Airport at 10:25pm local time on Wednesday, May 5, was suddenly axed after an emergency incident en route.

Holidaymakers were waiting at the gate to board the plane when the flight was cancelled.

Passengers were given the option of boarding flights to Leeds, Manchester, or Newcastle but no Scottish routes were offered.

It's understood up to 100 panicked passengers were left in the airport for hours.

Jet2 gave customers the choice of taking a refund and finding their own way home or waiting for another Jet2 flight.

Sharon Kyle, from Blantyre, was on holiday with her husband and son to celebrate her 50th birthday and says the family have been 'dumped' at a hotel by the airline.

The 51-year-old said she was told to head to the gates by staff after checking in but the family was left in disbelief when they were told their flight home was cancelled.

After hours of confusion at the airport, Sharon and her family - along with around 40 other passengers - were taken to a local hotel in the early hours.

They now must wait until tonight to fly to Manchester before being shuttled back to Glasgow on a bus.

Speaking to the Daily Record, Sharon said: "When we got to the airport at around 7pm they told us to go to our gate.

"They dumped up us at this hotel at around 3am, we didn't even know where we were. It is absolutely appalling how we've been treated. The Jet2 staff were being extremely rude."

Sharon says families with young children and wheelchair users are among the displaced passengers who have been left waiting to travel home.

The 51-year-old had been in Cyprus with her husband and son for a belated 50th birthday celebration but says the trip has been 'ruined'.

The couple have vowed to never fly with Jet2 again after their experience.

She said: "We've just been left stranded here and abandoned.

"Why are Jet2 not getting a plane out here to take us to Glasgow this morning? We're just not getting answers.

"People have missed their work.

"It's the end of the holiday and it's been ruined.

"We were due to come back in September with Jet2 and my husband's wanting me to cancel it."

Jodie Turner, 22, and her aunt Lynne Milne, 50, from Paisley, are also among those facing a long wait at the hotel.

Sharon has hit out at Jet2 (Supplied)

The 50-year-old suffers from diabetes, fibromyalgia and has a heart condition that requires daily medication.

However, the delay has meant Lynne does not have enough doses to see her through until they arrive home on Friday.

Jodie said: "We brought an extra dose for her so that she had enough but then all this has happened.

"We've managed to get a Jet2 rep to go a pharmacy they need a doctor to write a prescription.

"She only just had a heart attack a couple of months and we're really worried that something could happen on the flight."

Lynne also requires a wheelchair making the upheaval even more challenging for the family.

Jodie claimed Jet2 staff in the airport were unhelpful when Lynne's blood sugar levels dropped dangerously low after hours of waiting around.

She added: "The customer service we received last night was the worst I’ve ever had. The way we’ve been treated is honestly disgusting.

"After sitting in the airport all that time, my aunt can barely move and she’s still got a long flight and then the drive home."

Jet2 has said the flight was cancelled due to an urgent medical incident on another service and has apologised to customers.

The flight was cancelled due to a medical emergency (Supplied)

A Jet2 spokesperson said: “Yesterday, our outbound flight from Glasgow to Larnaca had to divert to Budapest due to a customer requiring urgent medical attention.

"The unforeseen delay caused by this divert meant that our cabin crew ran out of operating hours, meaning that the flight could not return as scheduled from Larnaca to the UK and we communicated this to customers when they arrived at Larnaca Airport.

"Our teams have worked extremely hard to provide a number of options for customers including swapping onto imminent Jet2.com flights back to the UK, cancelling with a full refund, or amending their booking to a flight of their choice.

"Where customers have chosen to swap onto another Jet2.com flight today, we are doing everything to look after them including providing hotel accommodation and food & drink.

"We have spoken to Ms. Kyle today and our team are attending the hotel to ensure she and other customers have everything they need. We would of course like to apologise to all affected customers by these unforeseen circumstances."

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