Dozens of Ryanair passengers were left stranded overnight at Madrid-Barajas Airport after their flight to Lanzarote was delayed for several hours and then cancelled, with no hotel, transport, or food provided by the airline.
The ordeal began on Thursday evening with flight FR2017, which was scheduled to depart at 8:55pm for Lanzarote.
According to affected passengers, boarding was delayed by two and a half hours, and once on the plane, they were kept waiting on the tarmac for another two hours. The crew eventually informed them that the flight could no longer operate because Lanzarote Airport closes at 1:00am.
At around 1:00am (Madrid time), passengers were disembarked and returned to Terminal 1 at Barajas Airport, where they say they were left without any support or clear information from Ryanair. “They literally told us to fend for ourselves,” said one frustrated traveller.
A single information desk set up by the airline attracted long queues from not only the Lanzarote flight, but also others in a similar situation. After hours of waiting, travellers were told that Ryanair could not offer them accommodation, transport, or even a meal voucher.
The only option presented was to rebook the flight for 6:30am the next morning or wait until Sunday, forcing many to spend the night in the terminal. “We ended up sleeping in a closed Burger King inside the airport,” said one passenger, describing how dozens of people had to find makeshift places to rest as they waited for the next available flight.
Passengers also criticised the complaint process, claiming that the forms provided were photocopies without official serial numbers. Some resorted to calling the Local Police to report the irregularities.
On Friday morning, flight FR2017 was still marked as "pending" on the airport information screens. Ryanair later sent a brief SMS to affected customers stating that they were unable to provide accommodation or transport due to “lack of availability”, and that passengers could submit reimbursement claims via the airline’s website.
