Ryanair Passengers Endure Nine-Hour Flight Only To End Up Where They Started

A Ryanair Boeing 737-800 that left Alicante for Newquay on Saturday, October 24, landed back in Alicante in the early hours of Sunday without reaching Cornwall. In between, it diverted to Dublin and then tried to land at Bristol before turning around. The weather was the cause, according to the reports, though Ryanair has not been quoted explaining the decisions.

The Journey Leg by Leg

The flight was Ryanair FR2954, scheduled to leave Alicante at 4:25 p.m. and reach Newquay at 5:50 p.m., according to One Mile at a Time. The aircraft was a Boeing 737-800 registered 9H-QDK, operated under Malta Air. It left Alicante roughly an hour late.

Near Newquay, the pilots descended to about 25,000 feet and judged the gusty conditions too dangerous to land. Paddle Your Own Kanoo said they circled twice before giving up. The aircraft diverted to Dublin and landed there at about 8:43p.m.

Newquay was not an option for the night, sources indicate this is because its terminal has limited operating hours. The new plan was to fly to Bristol and take passengers the rest of the way by coach, a journey of around two and a half hours. According to Paddle Your Own Kanoo and One Mile at a Time, passengers stayed on board in Dublin, although Spanish News Today described them as stranded there without saying whether they left the aircraft. The aircraft took off again at about 10:34 p.m.

Near Bristol the weather had not improved. The pilots judged a landing unsafe and held over the English Channel while Ryanair’s operations team decided what to do. The aircraft then turned south and landed back in Alicante at about 2:16 a.m. on Sunday.

The Weather

Storm Austen had battered the UK in the days before. Fly4Free, citing the Met Office, reported gusts of up to 71 mph in Cornwall on October 23. Paddle Your Own Kanoo described it as the first named storm of the winter and also cited gusts of about 71 mph across southwest England.

Why Alicante

Ryanair has not explained why it returned to Spain. One Mile at a Time, Fly4Free and Paddle Your Own Kanoo all suggested that Alicante is the aircraft’s base, so returning there avoided disrupting the next day’s flying elsewhere in the network. Paddle Your Own Kanoo added that this was likely cheaper than paying for coaches, hotels and rebooking. These are the outlets’ own readings, not statements from Ryanair.

What Ryanair Said

A spokesperson from Ryanair said: 

This flight from Alicante to Newquay Cornwall (24 Oct) diverted to Dublin due to high winds at Newquay Cornwall Airport (sic).

During this time, passengers remained onboard so the aircraft could depart as soon as a slot became available, however this flight subsequently returned to Alicante due to the adverse weather conditions.

Passengers’ Rights

Fly4Free said EU rules on air passenger rights apply because the flight left Spain. One Mile at a Time and Paddle Your Own Kanoo said weather is usually treated as an extraordinary circumstance, which would normally rule out cash compensation. Airlines must still provide meals, refreshments and, for overnight delays, hotels.

The number of people on board has not been reported, and it is not known how passengers got to Cornwall or whether they were rebooked.