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The passengers on an Easyjet flight from Montpellier (F) to Basel experienced a travel odyssey over the weekend.
As a passenger tells Blick, the Easyjet app already showed on Saturday afternoon that the flight was delayed. “The arrival time in Basel fluctuated between 12:10 pm and 1:45 am. The plane was scheduled to land in Switzerland at 10:55 p.m. But the plane did not arrive in Montpellier until shortly before 11 p.m.
Pilots don’t know where they’re flying
Boarding was quite normal. But then suddenly a message came: “We may not be able to land in Basel because the airport closes at midnight. We fly to Lyon or Milan. If you want to stay here, you can get off,” the passenger quoted. The pilot explained the delay with a storm and increased air traffic.
“Chaos broke out,” says the passenger. Angry passengers demanded answers – without success. “A flight attendant said they wouldn’t know where to land until the doors were closed. We have to decide whether to fly or not – without knowing where we’re going!”
The plane does not take off
Dozens of passengers then searched for their luggage – and off. About a third got off the plane. Then the pilots spoke again: “We will fly to Lyon. From there we will take the bus to Basel».
But nothing came of that. Some time later, the announcement followed that there were no buses in Lyon after all. “We will stay here and fly to Basel tomorrow. Please go to the arrivals hall, where a hotel will be arranged for you,” the plane said. “Many cursed. A few children cried. We just wanted to go to bed,” said the passenger.
Sleepless night in the airport lobby
But only those who lived in Montpellier got to see a real bed. Around two in the morning, the following announcement was made to the other passengers: “Unfortunately, Easyjet could not find any hotels. But we have beds on site.”
The passengers followed the airport staff to an entrance hall where camp beds had been set up – also for children and the elderly. “I thought I couldn’t see very well. There were no pillows, blankets or showers. It was also very cold because of the air conditioning,” said the passenger. Only emergency blankets and silver foil water were provided. 22.50 euros.
15 hours delay
The next day we went to Basel at 1 pm. The flight landed more than 15 hours late.
“The journey was horrific,” says the passenger. “We were tired, cold and hadn’t showered. It was clear from the start that the flight was late in Basel. Why did they keep us waiting so long?”
When asked by Blick, Easyjet said the flight could no longer start “due to the overnight lockdown at Montpellier Airport”. “Every effort has been made to minimize the impact of the disruption.” Local staff tried to help the passengers. Meal vouchers were also provided. «Due to the limited availability of hotels in Montpellier, we were unfortunately unable to find hotel rooms for our customers. We have informed the customers who booked their rooms themselves that they will get their money back. We sincerely regret that some customers had to spend the night at the airport.”
Source: Blick
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
