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BA slammed for ‘abysmal’ handling of overnight flight delay
British Airways has apologised to passengers for an overnight delay to its flight from Cyprus, which one customer claimed resulted in ‘mayhem’.
He claimed that, due to a shortage of hotel rooms in Larnaca, single travellers were told at the Golden Bay Hotel that they would have to share, but this was strongly disputed by BA which said: "We never ask customers to share rooms unless they are travelling in family groups."
It was the second long delay in less than three months endured by BA passengers flying from Larnaca to Heathrow.
BA passengers flying to London from Athens earlier this month also had to endure an overnight delay after their aircraft developed a similar fault.
In the latest incident, flight BA0663 was due to leave Larnaca on Tuesday evening but the service was cancelled after the Boeing 767 operating the service developed a problem with the air-conditioning.
The passenger described BA’s handling of the situation as ‘abysmal’.
He said those on the almost full flight were originally told there was a problem with the 767’s air conditioning or pressurisation, but after ‘one to two’ hours sitting on the tarmac with only a small bottle of water, they were asked to disembark.
"We re-boarded and attempted a take-off but then the flight was aborted as all the time the cabin temperature became very very hot," he said. "In fact, higher than any temperature my wife and I have experienced in the tropics. So we all disembarked and returned back to the gate."
He said that BA’s ground-handlers Swissport, eventually arranged for passengers to be taken to a hotel at midnight, but it was ‘mayhem’. In addition to claiming that some of the 60 customers taken to the Golden Bay were told they would have to buddy up, he said no priority given to those with mobility issues.
A Boeing 777 was flown to Larnaca the next day to pick up the passengers, who arrived back at Heathrow the on Wednesday evening.
The passenger praised both BA crews, but criticised the airline for its handling of the situation.
In a statement, BA said: "We offered our customers meals and overnight accommodation after a technical issue with their aircraft.
"A replacement aircraft was provided to get everyone to their destination as quickly as possible.
"We have been in touch with our customers to say we are very sorry for the delay and inconvenience."
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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