Passenger caught up in Ryanair 'mass brawl' relives moment drunks caused mayhem

19 January 2024 , 16:59

529     0

Passenger caught up in Ryanair 'mass brawl' relives moment drunks caused mayhem

A British woman has described the horror of being on a Ryanair flight that had to divert after drunk passengers caused mayhem.

The plane left London Luton airport at 8am and was due to reach Lanzarote at 12.15pm local time today but ended up being around an hour delayed after "drunk passengers harassing people" forced the plane to divert to Faro in Portugal, one British passenger who wished not to be named told the Mirror.

The unnamed woman was travelling alone and was taking a nap on the plane to be suddenly woken up by the captain on the tannoy saying unacceptable behaviour on the plane would not be tolerated especially not against their staff or other passengers. She continued: "He said if it didn’t stop he would divert the plane to Portugal for the police to intervene. Around twenty minutes later the captain suddenly said we were landing in ten minutes but there was no other information."

She was seated at the front of the plane and the unruly passengers were at the back, so she did not see the events unfolding. But a stewardess told her there was a drunk passenger who was harassing people including women who were on a hen do. One male steward was also reportedly pushed over in the aisle. A video shared with the Mirror showed one of the brawling men being dragged down the aisles in a headlock by police with passengers all jeering and shouting "get off" at him.

Police on the runway in Portugal

Passengers on the plane stood watching the ordeal

She continued: "When he became violent it was quite scary as he was kicking and punching in such a small area. The staff asked if anyone had been hurt to let them know. The staff were really great and I felt so bad they had to deal with that... they were a bit shaken up I think. When we landed several police came on and they were talking to several people. Three males and three females got off. The main culprit was then allowed back on the plane to get a bag but then he sat back down and refused to get up. He was then violent with the police who then had to drag him off. This whole event went on for quite a while. The five people who got off without violence were put on a shuttle bus, the violent man was put into a police car."

Abandoned UK airport plans relaunch with budget flights to Spain and Cyprus

An email to the passenger shared with the Mirror read: "Dear [redacted] , We apologise that your flight, FR3511, from London Luton to Lanzarote on the 19-01-2024 was unexpectedly diverted to Faro. When we are forced to divert a flight, we immediately begin planning your onward journey from the airport you diverted to. If your flight diverted and is scheduled to continue from there, we will work to keep this delay as minimal as possible."

A Ryanair spokesperson told the Mirror: “This flight from London Luton to Lanzarote (19 Jan) diverted to Faro when passengers became disruptive onboard. Crew called ahead for police assistance and the aircraft was met by local police upon arrival who removed the disruptive passengers. The flight continued to Lanzarote following a short delay. This is now a matter for local police.”

Rachel Hagan