A married couple set off to fly to Spain on holiday only to wake up to an airport blunder ending up 1,300 miles from their destination.
Andrew Gore and his wife Victoria were due to spend a week on the Costa Brava with friends and family to celebrate his 47th birthday.
They had booked Ryanair flights to Barcelona, but the couple – who had special assistance tickets – were instead directed to the wrong Ryanair plane, unknowingly starting a two-day, 4,750-mile ordeal for the hapless couple.
The special assistance teams at Bristol Airport took them to the plane before it took off on its way to Kaunus in Lithuania – very much in the wrong direction for Spain.
Andrew, an amputee, and Victoria, who is autistic, both fell asleep on the flight and woke up to find they were in the wrong country – and not with their family.
Andrew and Victoria had booked Ryanair flights to Barcelona, but the couple – who had special assistance tickets – were instead taken to the wrong Ryanair plane, unknowingly embarking on a two-day, 4,750-mile ordeal (shown on a map in red ) for the unhappy couple. Green shows their expected journey from Bristol to Barcelona
Andrew Gore and his wife Victoria were due to spend a week with friends and family on the Costa Brava to celebrate his 47th birthday, but they ended up 2,100 kilometers away from their destination after an airport blunder resulted in them being put on a plane. Lithuania
“I asked the flight attendant if we could sit together because I’m afraid of flying,” said Victoria, who is also 47. “She checked our boarding pass again and put us in the second row.”
‘We have been away a lot and have always had special guidance, so this was nothing new for us. The minibus took us to the Ryanair plane and they checked our boarding pass and let us onto the plane.
‘We didn’t see our family boarding, so we asked if they were on board, and were assured that they were.
‘We had a drink and then went to sleep, because we got up early. When we landed, it was very clear that we were in Lithuania.”
She added: “I was desperate and scared. I didn’t stop crying. It was my worst nightmare.’
The couple from Mountain Ash, South Wales, had to take an Uber journey 150 miles across the border to Riga, Latvia, before flying on to Spain.
The special assistance teams at Bristol Airport (pictured) took them to the plane before it took off en route to Kaunus in Lithuania – very much in the wrong direction for Spain
Instead of their chosen destination – Barcelona, the couple woke up to find themselves landing in Lithuania – 2,100 kilometers from their Spanish destination. Pictured: Vilnius, Lithuania (file)
They told the crew and when the pilot was alerted, he became ‘enraged’ at the confusion and demanded that the crew help them with their onward journey.
But because there were no direct flights between Kaunus and Barcelona they had to make the 150 Uber ride the next day to catch a flight to Spain.
However, when they landed in Barcelona, they learned that their bags had been removed from the original flight because they had not boarded and had to wait another two days for luggage.
Victoria said the couple paid more than £1,500 for the package holiday with Sunshine.co.uk and flew on May 25.
Victoria said: ‘I’ve heard of suitcases going to the wrong place, but not from people. Nowadays there are so many controls. How could it happen?
‘They looked at our boarding passes so many times. It’s unbelievable.’
Ryanair blamed ABM, which provides special assistance at Bristol Airport.
With no flights from Lithuania to Barcelona, the couple had to take a 150-mile Uber trip to Riga in neighboring Latvia (pictured, file photo) and from there fly to Spain
A spokesperson said: ‘These passengers booked special assistance on this flight from Bristol to Barcelona, but ABM agents put them on the wrong flight to Kaunas, despite signage at the gate clearly stating the flight’s destination mention.
‘On arrival at Kaunas Airport, these passengers informed the crew that they were on the wrong flight and Ryanair immediately arranged for both passengers to be re-accommodated on the next available flight to Barcelona, which was due to depart the following morning from the Riga airport.
‘As these passengers did not board their flight to Barcelona, their bags were removed from the aircraft in accordance with standard security procedures.
‘When it was realized that these passengers had taken the wrong route and had been diverted to Barcelona, their bags were rushed from Bristol Airport to Barcelona.
‘We sincerely apologize to these passengers for any inconvenience caused as a result of ABM’s error and have assured that they will be fully compensated by Bristol Airport.’
Andrew, an amputee, and Victoria, who is autistic, both fell asleep on the flight and woke up to find they were in the wrong country – and not with their family
After their two-day ordeal, the couple finally landed in Barcelona (photo, file photo)
A spokesperson for Bristol Airport said: ‘We have been working with our business partners to investigate this incident.
‘All customers will have their travel documentation checked by the airline or their ground handling agent before boarding an aircraft.
‘Since we were made aware of the issue, Bristol Airport has been working with our aviation handler and special assistance provider to investigate the circumstances and make improvements for the future.
“We will contact the customer with information to forward the complaint to the appropriate business partner for resolution.”