The mother of a 13-month-old baby said she was left with her daughter ‘screaming and crying’ for food after being ‘abandoned’ in Malaga after their TUI flight back to Manchester was delayed by 46 hours.
Debbie Holden travelled to Malaga with her daughter Kendal on May 18 and was due to fly back to Manchester Airport on Wednesday morning (May 25). Debbie said their trip had been ‘perfect’, until the moment they were dropped off at Malaga Airport.
Having arrived at 7.30am for their 1pm flight, they were later informed that their TUI flight had been cancelled altogether. They were taken to a replacement hotel, but Debbie said they were given ‘no indication’ of when their flight would be.
“We were initially told that our flight was late landing in Manchester so it would be late for us, then it was changed to a technical fault before it was cancelled due to an operational issue,” Debbie, from Doncaster, told the M.E.N. "There was not one person to speak to at the airport who knew anything about what was going on. Then we got told we were going to be taken to a replacement hotel in Malaga while they worked it out.
“They literally abandoned us at that hotel - there’s no other way to put it. We were dropped off by the coach and just left in the boiling hot sun to queue up. I had to beg for them to let me inside so my daughter didn’t burn because we had no sun cream or anything on us.”
Debbie said while staying at the hotel, there was a period of time when she received no communication from TUI regarding their flights back to the UK. She said they had gone from staying at an all-inclusive resort to now having to pay for drinks at the hotel alongside meals. She added that this was later changed to include one drink with meals.
“We got a text just before 9pm the next day to say that they were unable to fly us back that day but would be picking us up just after midnight for a 4am flight,” she explains. “I wasn’t too happy about that as I would never choose that time of flight for my little girl but I just wanted to get home at that point.”
When they arrived at the airport at 1am on Friday (May 27), Debbie said her baby’s oat milk was taken off her by security. “I wasn’t quite sure how Kendal was going to eat or drink so I packed milk for her,” she said. “She is allergic to milk so that oak milk was supposed to be her food. I tried to explain that to them but security just threw it in the bin.”
While upset, Debbie said she thought she would just buy something else from the airport once through security but she then discovered that all of the shops and restaurants were closed. Then she found out their flight had been delayed until just before 6.30am.
“My little girl was screaming, I can’t even describe how it was,” Debbie recalls. “She was hungry but I couldn’t feed her. The only option I had in the vending machine was water, chocolate milk or a can of Monster. I was so close to giving her that milkshake but I couldn't do that to her, it could have made things worse.
“I tried to trick her and put water in the bottle but she knew. I was begging and pleading with other passengers to help me try and find something for her but because she was allergic to milk, it was really difficult. I eventually managed to find a member of staff from Wamos Air who rang loads of people and eventually took me back to security. They apologised for taking my milk off me and said it was a mistake.
“They rummaged through the bin to find the milk and gave it back to me. It was locked so it hadn’t been opened, but I would have taken anything at that time just to make my baby happy. Kendal had literally cried herself to sleep by that point, but the milk was enough to give her the breakfast she needed on the flight.”
The flight, which was operated by Wamos Air, then departed Malaga just after 7am before landing at Manchester Airport. When the flight arrived, passengers had to stay on board for an hour while they waited for steps to take them off-board. Debbie said the only food they could get was a bottle of water and a small packet of crisps until they were in Manchester Airport.
At the baggage hall, Debbie claims she was first informed that there were no staff available to take their luggage off the plane and they would have to fill out forms to get them delivered home. She said a member of staff then made an announcement to say their luggage would be on the carousels in ‘ten to 15 minutes’, before arriving some three hours later.
“It was a complete nightmare - it was just one thing after another,” Debbie explained. “There was just a total lack of communication. Nobody knew what was happening. How can you leave people stranded in a foreign country with no information or guidance?”
Debbie said TUI has offered her £350 in compensation, but she says she still wants answers. “I don’t think the compensation undoes the damage they have done really,” Debbie added.
“I can’t get through to anyone to explain that what they did was unjustifiable - Something somewhere has gone horribly wrong. It was horrendous. I will never get Kendal's screaming out of my head. It was torture to my little girl.
"This was my little girl's first holiday abroad and I can’t remember of any of the good things because all I can think of is her screaming at being hungry and the drama at the airport. As it stands right now, I'll never leave the country again with any airline or holiday company because I daren't even try it.
"I booked with TUI in the first place because they’re a reputable and reliable company. I don’t think anything could have gone more worse from the day of departure. It was just terrible."
A spokesperson for TUI told the M.E.N: "We’d like to apologise to customers travelling on flight TOM2301 from Malaga to Manchester which was unable to depart as planned on Wednesday, May 25, due to operational issues. All impacted customers were offered welfare vouchers, overnight accommodation and were provided with meals while we worked through a new flight plan.
"We were in regular contact with customers, and advised them of their new departure time as soon as we could. The flight departed for Manchester at 06:27 local time on Friday, May 27."
The M.E.N has also reached out to Malaga Airport for comment.
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