A couple attempting to fly back to the UK from a trip in France ended up 800 miles away in Spain after they got on the wrong flight. Elise Mallia, 33, and partner Jessy Jezequel, 41, had been to Marseille to watch the local football side take on Nice but their blunder forced them into an unexpected detour.
Returning to the airport, they had their boarding passes scanned and then boarded the Ryanair plane - thinking they were heading back to London Stansted. But, an hour into the journey, they heard the flight attendant announce they would soon begin their descent - into Spanish capital Madrid.
They said they are baffled as to how their flight blunder went unnoticed. Elise, an estate agent, from Fulham, southwest London, said: "An hour into our flight, Jesse said he thought he heard a flight attendant say Madrid, but we thought he had dreamed it.
"We had our boarding passes scanned three times before boarding. We got home in the end, but we still have no idea how it happened."
Elise told how she and her French partner Jessy popped to Marseille for just one night for a football match, on March 20. They were due to fly from Marseille just before 3pm on March 21, so headed to what they believed was the correct gate when it was time to board.
She claimed she recollected spotting 'Madrid' on a neighbouring gate and even recalled making a joke they should continue their holiday and go to Spain instead of returning to London. Elise said: "We must have had our boarding passes scanned about three times. Surely it must be quite hard to actually get on the wrong plane because of the security."
They did eventually make it back to Fulham - five hours later than planned. They claim they have been unable to get in touch with Ryanair since the incident - and are still perplexed by how it happened.
A spokesperson for Ryanair said: "Mr Jezequel and Ms Mallia boarded their flight from Marseille to London Stansted through the correct gate. However, these passengers then failed to follow the allocated route to the aircraft departing for London Stansted, crossed an unauthorised area and wrongly boarded a flight departing to Madrid.
"Both passengers were able to occupy the same seats they had booked for their original flight, as this flight was not fully booked, thus not alerting them to their error at this time. An announcement advising passengers of their final destination and estimated time of arrival is made before every flight departure – which should have alerted Mr Jezequel and Ms Mallia that they were on the wrong aircraft.
"Upon arriving at Madrid Airport, these passengers then realised their error and Ryanair staff were notified of these misrouted passengers. Mr Jezequel and Ms Mallia were accommodated on a flight from Madrid to London Stansted later that day. It is each passenger’s responsibility to ensure they board the correct aircraft.”
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