“It was a total overreaction. It was scandalous.”
One of three men removed from a Ryanair flight during an incident on Saturday morning has given his account of the experience, criticising the airline for their “overreaction.”
The plane bound for Ibiza was forced to divert to Paris after the passengers in question reportedly became unruly in an alcohol-related altercation.
Speaking to Neil Prendeville on Cork radio station Red FM on Monday, Niall Harrington, who was escorted off of the flight alongside two of his friends, noted that one of the party had brought a naggin of vodka onto the plane.
“He poured his own drink, and they asked him to stop,” recalled Harrington, who was present as part of a stag party that was travelling to Ibiza.
“He put it away. Later on, he opened it again and before we knew it, we were told that we were being diverted. All these stories about disruptive behaviour – there was nothing like that, it was just good fun, people were on a stag, people were on holidays, everyone was in good form.”
Harrington, who has since reached his destination with his friends, shot down reports about a drunken disturbance, calling them “100% fake” and “fake news.”
“We’ve met people over here who were on the flight, people with families, and they just couldn’t believe it,” he said.
Harrington confirmed that he received an email that says he is prohibited from flying with Ryanair for good.
“I presume when they put the plane down, they have to justify it, and that’s probably why they’re going hard on it,” he noted.
Harrington said that he was “frightened” when armed security boarded the plane, and that his friend immediately admitted to having the vodka in his possession. Both were subsequently removed by French police.
“It was a total overreaction,” he argued. “It was scandalous. It was a disgrace, a disgrace.”
You can listen to the full interview here.
Ryanair, meanwhile, has called for a two-drink limit and a pre-10am alcohol ban following the incident.
The airline has since called on airports to limit drink sales pre-flights in an attempt to curb such harmful and disruptive behaviour.
In an official statement, Ryanair stressed that the safety and comfort of their passengers remains their “number one priority.”
“This flight from Dublin to Ibiza (16 June) diverted to Paris Beauvais after three passengers became disruptive inflight,” the statement began.
“The aircraft landed normally and the passengers were removed and detained by police upon arrival, before the aircraft continued to Ibiza. We will not tolerate unruly or disruptive behaviour at any time and the safety and comfort of our customers, crew and aircraft is our number one priority.”
The spokesperson continued by saying that instances like this are precisely the reasons for the implementation of the new ban.
“This is exactly why we are calling for significant changes to prohibit the sale of alcohol at airports, such as a two-drink limit per passenger and no alcohol sales before 10am.
“It’s incumbent on the airports to introduce these preventative measures to curb excessive drinking and the problems it creates, rather than allowing passengers to drink to excess before their flights.”
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