Airline left me to travel 300 miles

A DISABLED grandfather has spoken of his struggle after a cancelled flight meant he had to travel more than 300 miles without assistance.

Robert Dale, 70, was due to fly home to Newcastle with easyJet after a break in Barcelona on September 25.

But when his plane was delayed, he had to take a different flight to the UK a day later, landing him in Southend, forcing him to travel nearly 300 miles and arrive home 48 hours later than planned.

Grandfather-of-two Mr Dale said: “About 10 minutes before the flight was supposed to leave we heard it was cancelled.

“Everybody was in an uproar and a panic; nobody had any information.”

Eventually, Mr Dale, from Newton Aycliffe, and his fellow passengers were transported to a hotel, where the airline paid for rooms for them for the night. But the next morning he was told he would have to make his own way back to the airport, where he learned that there weren’t any flights back to Newcastle for another five days – and easyJet would not pay for any more nights in a hotel.

He said: “When I got to the airport I managed to get a wheelchair. I needed it as I couldn’t stand on my feet any longer. I was told they had a flight to Southend. I could either have that or wait the full five days.”

Despite the fact that the airline had been informed about his disability, Mr Dale says he was left to get on the plane last, and had to walk up the steps onto the plane without assistance, which left him in a lot of pain.

When he arrived at Southend late at night, he had to pay for a hotel stay, and then travel for hours back to Newcastle, where he had parked his car, before finally making it home.

Although he managed to claim money back for these expenses, he says this took several weeks. He said: “I got no apology. It was just disgusting.” Former coach driver Mr Dale loves to travel and says the experience hasn’t put him off seeing the world – but he’ll be choosing a different airline from now on.

After contacting solicitors Bott and Co, Mr Dale won £345 under EU flight regulations.

A spokeswoman for easyJet said: “We are really sorry to hear about Mr Dale’s experience following his flight from Barcelona to Newcastle being cancelled due to adverse weather conditions, and we appreciate how difficult this would have been for him.

“We are sorry that no onward transport to Newcastle was provided for him, as it usually would be.

“We are also investigating why the correct level of special assistance required was not provided.

“We have settled this case with Mr Dale and reimbursed his expenses during this time. As the cancellation was due to weather it is not eligible for EU261 [delayed flight] compensation.” Robert Dale didn’t want to wait five days to fly from Barcelona to Newcastle after his flight was cancelled, and was flown to Southend instead