Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Moment ‘drunk’ Irish couple get kicked off Ryanair flight
Passengers cheer as unruly pair are led away by police
THIS is the dramatic moment Spanish police escort a “drunk” Irish woman and her partner off a Ryanair plane.
The pilot of flight FR7063 from Alicante to Dublin diverted the plane to the port city of Santander on Wednesday.
He asked police to meet the aircraft when the pair allegedly became “aggressive” at 35,000ft above sea level.
A witness told Cadena Ser: “A woman suddenly got up and began to shout at an air stewardess. She had been drinking a lot at Alicante airport and was drunk.
“She began to get up and shout when she was on the plane. The crew tried to calm her down but couldn’t.
“We were then told to stay in our seats and put our seatbelts on but this woman carried on shouting as if she was mad and an idiot and in the end we were informed we were landing at Santander so she could be removed.
“When we landed she didn’t want to get off at first. She began shouting again and sticking her middle finger up before she was eventually removed from the plane.”
Footage broadcast by Spanish broadcaster Cadena Ser showed the woman escorted off the plane arguing with a Civil Guard officer and an air stewardess before being led away with her partner.
Fellow passengers could be heard shouting: “See you tomorrow”, “Adios” and “Goodbye” as they were led away.
They broke into a round of applause
YESTERDAY
– with several of those on board filming the early departure amid loud laughter. The plane took off again at around 5pm.
The pair, believed to be in their 50s, were not arrested, as is customary in Spain in situations of this kind and were later spotted inside the airport terminal trying to buy new tickets back home.
They are facing a fine for breaching air security after Civil Guard officers took them off the aircraft.
A Civil Guard spokesman said: “Their personal details were recorded and they were informed they were being reported for breaching air security. They won’t face criminal charges but are likely to receive a fine.
A Ryanair spokesman said: “This flight diverted to Santander after two passengers became disruptive inflight.
“The aircraft landed normally and the passengers were removed and detained by police upon arrival, before the aircraft continued to Dublin.
“We will not tolerate unruly or disruptive behaviour and the safety and comfort of our customers, crew and aircraft is our number one priority. This is now a matter for local police.
“This is why we are calling for significant changes to prohibit the sale of alcohol at airports, such as a two-drink limit per passenge and no alcohol sales before 10am.
“It’s incumbent on the airports to introduce these preventative measures to curb excessive drinking and the problems it creates.”