The flight from Alicante to Dublin was diverted to Santander on Wednesday.
Two passengers were removed from a Ryanair flight from Alicante to Dublin on Wednesday afternoon after becoming disruptive during the course of the flight.
The flight diverted to Santander in order to remove the passengers, who were detained by police upon arrival, before continuing on to Dublin, where it landed later in the day.
The Irish Mirror reports that the Ryanair pilot asked police to meet the plane in Santander as an Irish couple, who were under the influence of alcohol, were being “aggressive” and were “arguing violently” on board the flight, according to sources quoted by the paper.
In a statement issued to JOE on Thursday morning, a Ryanair spokesperson said: “This flight from Alicante to Dublin (10 Jan) diverted to Santander after two passengers became disruptive inflight.
“The aircraft landed normally and the passengers were removed and detained by police upon arrival, before the aircraft continued to Dublin. 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. This is now a matter for local police.
“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.”
LISTEN: You Must Be Jokin’ with Aideen McQueen – Faith healers, Coolock craic and Gigging as Gaeilge
