Traveling over the past year has been a nightmare for some. A passenger who boarded a Ryanair flight to Portugal had the experience of a lifetime when he ended up in Spain instead.
Barry Masterson documented his entire trek in a Twitter thread. He and several other passengers were on a flight that was supposed to be heading from Dublin, Ireland to Faro, Portugal. Instead, of landing at the correct destination, the aircraft made its way to Malaga, Spain.
Despite Europe being easier to travel around, the two locations were a four-hour drive apart and in an entirely different country. “Morale is low, some people are only just realizing we’re in Spain. Flight staff are trying to calm the crowd with the promise of the mystery box of answers that someone else will provide when we get to the airport,” Masterson wrote on Twitter.
Masterson went on to describe the incredible journey with 157 other strangers. “We’re on a five-hour bus to Portugal now and we’ve stopped for petrol and pee stops within five minutes. I’m never getting out of here. One bus for 157 people, good luck to everyone we left behind. Got to the Dublin airport 12 hours ago and now I’m in a petrol station in Malaga at 5:41 a.m., send help,” he said.
The group of weary travelers did end up making it to Faro but even then, they were met with some hostility. “Had a taxi booked from Faro airport to the hotel last night and their receptionist sent a furious text about us landing in Malaga. I’m sorry we didn’t call to warn you from literally thousands of feet in the air that we were being taken hostage to the wrong country,” he said.
Apparently, the disruption took place due to the French Air Traffic Control strike, which ended up causing confusion during the flight. According to a Ryanair spokesperson, this impacted all airlines that were flying to, from and over France that day.
Source: https://twitter.com/BarryMasterson/status/1570946317970739201