A British couple have shared their stressful ordeal after getting caught up in the traffic control chaos, claiming to have been “stranded” in Portugal for five days.
Elizabeth Murphy and her partner, Liam, were left “left in the dark” after their flight home was reportedly cancelled due to the air traffic control issues which occurred on 28 August 2023.
The couple, aged 34 and 27, flew out to their holiday destination from Glasgow airport on 25 August for a quick four-day bank holiday weekend break.
Now, they claim to have been forced to spend an extra £2,000 on accommodation, essentials, and a new flight – and Elizabeth has missed two days of work as well.
To make matters worse, the pair had been eagerly awaiting to get back to their five-month-old puppy at home – who they had never left before.
Elizabeth, a fundraising worker, claims there were queues filled with hundreds of people at the airport and that there were no representatives available to help.
“I thought they’d at least put us up in a hotel overnight, but they left us in the dark completely,” Elizabeth, from Glasgow, told NeedToKnow.co.uk.
“I checked the flight on my phone and saw it was delayed but then it was on time, so I thought it had all been sorted.
“But then on the way to the airport, it said it had been cancelled, so we went to speak with someone – but no one was available.
“At the check-in desk, all I was given was a piece of paper with details of their website and a QR code, it wasn’t of any use.
“There were hundreds of stressed people who were waiting for answers, but they never came.
“I was distraught and wanted to get home, but there was nothing we could do.”
Elizabeth claims the couple spent three hours in the airport but after realising a solution was unlikely to happen in time, they booked a last-minute hotel for the night.
She hoped to be able to get home the next morning but alleges that, despite multiple calls, online chats, and social media comments to easyJet, no one has replied.
The accommodation alone has cost the couple an extra £600.
Elizabeth said: “I had only brought one bag with us, so we’ve had to get more luggage to put all our new stuff in.
“I’ve had to fork out for taxis back and forth from the airport to different hotels, as well as the extra days on our parking at the airport back home.
“It’s made me miss two days of work, and I don’t get paid until Friday, so we’re surviving on not much.
“It’s spoiled a really good holiday, where we went kayaking, paddle boarding and saw all the tourist places.
“We thought it’d be a cheap getaway – clearly not.”
During five days, Elizabeth and her partner kept checking for flights to get home but say they were either very expensive or would take up to 30 hours to get home – for what is normally under three hours in the air.
Luckily, they’ve now been able to find a direct connection – but have had to spend £700 to fly with Ryanair instead.
The 34-year-old added: “I still haven’t heard anything from them [easyJet] and I’ve tried to get in touch, but I can’t get through.
“All I’ve seen is other people going ballistic.
“I hope they reimburse everyone for this, as it’s been truly disgraceful.
“It’s not their fault, but the way they’ve handled it has been shocking.”
Jam Press has contacted EasyJet for comment.
