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Hundreds of Tui passengers have spent the evening making an attempt to sleep at Barbados airport after their flight house to London Gatwick was cancelled – while “premium customers were given hotels”.
Tui flight TOM21 from the Caribbean island to Gatwick was making ready for an on-time departure at 5pm native time (9pm GMT). But because the plane was making ready to go away, a floor service automobile is reported to have struck a cargo door on the Boeing 787 jet.
One passenger, Mark Pantlin, informed The Independent: “We heard a loud bang half an hour before take-off. It appears to have been a vehicle carrying disabled passengers striking the aircraft.
“We were told by captain that it had been inspected locally and that UK engineers had said we were good to fly. But 20 minutes later they told that they were looking again.
“We were then told flight was cancelled and we would be staying the night and they were sorting out alternative flights.”
Many flights left Barbados for the UK over the following few hours, together with British Airways departures to each London Heathrow and Gatwick, two Virgin Atlantic jets to Heathrow and one other to Manchester, plus Tui flights to Manchester, East Midlands and Birmingham.
The Independent has requested Tui if seats on any of these flights had been sought.
Mr Pantlin mentioned passengers had been informed that the Barbados airport administration wouldn’t let anybody off the airplane till in a single day lodging was booked for everybody on board.
Eventually they had been offloaded at 10pm, 5 hours after the flight was scheduled to go away.
“No Tui staff were seen for at least 45 minutes,” Mr Pantlin mentioned. “We were then told there was not enough hotel space on the island for all.
“Tui then decided to put families with young children, and any disabled and older unwell people in hotels first – followed by all premium economy passengers.
“Everybody else was left sleeping on chairs at night, with no pillows or blankets, and with no news still from Tui.”
Night strikes: Barbados airport lounge, the place Tui passengers had been stranded in a single day
(Mark Pantlin)
A spokesperson for Tui informed The Independent: “We would like to apologise to customers who were due to depart from Bridgetown to London Gatwick on flight TOM21 on 7 March. Unfortunately, in an incident out of our control, the aircraft was damaged as it prepared to depart.
“For the safety of our customers and crew, all customers disembarked the aircraft and remain in Bridgetown while safety procedures are performed.
“We understand how frustrating this is for our customers and apologise for the delay. Customers are being contacted directly by the Tui team when more information is available about their return to the UK and remain working tirelessly for accommodation options for those affected.”
Mr Pantlin summed up his view of the expertise as: “Unbelievable levels of incompetence and lack of updates. Tui gave a massive two fingers up to most customers.”
In December, passengers on an Air France airplane from the Caribbean to Paris that “went tech” in Guadeloupe had been segregated, with solely business-class customers supplied with resort rooms.
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