Scores of British holidaymakers were left stranded today in chaos on the Greek island of Zakynthos after an Easyjet plane was grounded for at least two days.
Technical problems with flight EZY9746 to Gatwick mean that it has been stuck on the tarmac since Sunday, and the budget airline was forced to cancel a replacement flight to help the stranded families because the island invokes a night-time curfew on landings to protect endangered loggerhead turtles during their hatching season.
A new flight is scheduled for 3pm this afternoon, according to Easyjet.
The chaotic flight follows a British Easyjet passenger being punched by an airport worker in Nice, in the south of France, on Saturday, as a 14-hour delay with a flight to Luton left furious passengers without food, water and baby supplies.
Many of those involved in the fiasco in Greece have also been left without adequate supplies and there have been problems finding hotel rooms for the stranded passengers at the height of the tourist season.
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George Trefgarne, an occasional contributor to The Times, was originally booked on the flight with his wife, Camilla, and their two children — Alice, eight, and William, seven — as they tried to get home to London. Mr Trefgarne said that “it was total chaos”, with nobody from Easyjet on hand to offer information, food or drink.
Only cheese sandwiches were available in two airport cafés, and groundstaff from Swissport were “totally overwhelmed”, he said.
Mr Trefgarne added: “We were among a handful who managed to get out on a Thomson flight, but only after spending nine hours at the airport with no information. There were lots of families with children, but no Easyjet reps and no offers of anything to eat or drink. I feel so sorry for those left behind.”
Those not placed on another plane were forced to stay in Zakynthos, commonly known as Zante, and were hoping that the Gatwick flight would finally leave at 2pm local time today after a minimum 48-hour delay.
An Easyjet spokesman said: “Unfortunately Easyjet was unable to operate the flight EZY9746 from Zante to London Gatwick on Sunday due to a technical fault with the aircraft. Engineers were immediately dispatched to Zante and believed that the technical issue was rectified [on Monday]. However, it then reoccurred before boarding, which meant the flight could not operate.
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“The safety of our passengers and crew is our highest priority and we will only operate if it is safe to do so. We do all possible to try and minimise delays and as such planned to send a replacement aircraft. Unfortunately, due to the night curfew rule at the airport, we were unable to get the aircraft into the airport on Monday. The flight is now due to departon Tuesday afternoon.’
Easyjet was unable to supply the exact number of passengers involved, or say what the technical fault with the plane was. The spokesman added: “Around half of the passengers have travelled on flights with alternative carriers on Monday afternoon. Passengers have been provided with hotel accommodation and expense in line with European legislation.”
The airline added in a statement: “We are very sorry for the delay and thank customers for their understanding.”
Under EU law, passengers flying on short-haul flights that are delayed more than three hours are entitled to about £220 in compensation.
Zakynthos airport, the only one on the Ionian island, is situated close to beaches where loggerhead turtles lay their eggs at night, prompting the authorities to ban aircraft when it is dark.
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The flight to and from Zante from Gatwick normally takes about three and a half hours and is often packed with British holidaymakers, especially in the high season.