Passengers’ fury as they wait 10 hours for flight

PASSENGERS flying from Cardiff Airport to Alicante were left furious after waiting 10 and a half hours following a lengthy flight delay on Saturday night.

The Vueling – VY 1240 flight was set to leave the Welsh capital at 12.50pm, but holidaymakers, including young children, were left waiting until 11.37pm before they took off, arriving at 2.52am local time.

They were meant to land at 4.15pm. Some were said to have been left starving, tired and cold, with little provision offered to those affected.

Speaking at 9pm on Saturday night, one frustrated flyer said: “I have not eaten since 7.30am.

“Vueling have finally handed out £15 vouchers to be spent in the departure lounge but that barely covers the cost of anything on the limited menu at the bar in the departure lounge.

“A burger is the only thing really on the menu for that price.

“I’ve requested blankets because it is freezing with the air conditioning blasting and most dressed for the summer sun.”

The passenger added: “There is a queue of around 60 people at the bar.

“The airport staff have been lovely, this is not their fault and in the first few hours the mood was fine, but it started to turn quite sour.

“People are getting angry and frustrated. Some are saying they might have to cancel their holiday, others say their holiday plans are ruined.”

The incoming flight, from Alicante to Cardiff, was also delayed for the same amount of time, which appears to have been the cause of the delay.

Vueling said “operational reasons” were to blame and apologised to customers for the inconvenience caused.

It provided updates to holidaymakers throughout the night on its website, with several repeat messages which read: “We are working to set the new departure’s time as soon as possible. We will keep you informed about your flight’s status.”

They then followed up with a message once the issue was resolved.

Vueling was approached for a comment.