A Ryanair captain was forced to divert his plane yesterday after a ‘flight from hell’ that saw six people ordered off by police, a medical emergency and cabin crew repeatedly having to tell people not to smoke.
Police boarded the 4.25pm flight from Manchester to Faro after it made an unscheduled stop to remove the disruptive passengers – Rangers fans and two women who were so drunk they could hardly stand.
The captain of the holiday flight was so concerned for the safety of the crew and other passengers that an hour into the trip he made an emergency landing in Nantes, France.
Police boarded the jet and escorted three football fans, one of them wearing a red and yellow sombrero, from the plane, along with the two women who were arguing and swearing despite an old woman next to them suffering breathing problems.
It came after one fan was removed on the tarmac in Manchester before the flight had even taken off.
The football fans were among a group of supporters heading to Seville in Spain to watch their team in tomorrow’s Europa League final.
Police boarded the flight from Manchester to Faro after it made an unscheduled stop to remove the disruptive passengers
French authorities boarded the jet and escorted three Rangers football fans, one of them wearing a red and yellow sombrero, from the plane
Three Rangers fans, one of whom was wearing a sombrero, were escorted from the Ryanair flight to Portugal after it made an unscheduled stop in Nantes, France
A passenger on the early evening flight 9130 from Manchester to Faro told how trouble began before the Boeing 737 had even taken off with police having to speak with some of the fans.
‘I have flown many times, but this really was the flight from hell,’ said the passenger.
‘The Ryanair cabin staff were fantastic and did their best to contain the situation, but these people were out of control. They were just drunken idiots who would not stop vaping or smoking and causing problems. No one was sorry when they were taken off.’
The trouble on the flight began before passengers had even boarded with police having to speak with a group of about a dozen Rangers supporters.
Other passengers noticed that they had been drinking for several hours – but police only warned them about smoking in the terminal.
Cabin crew ordered one of the fans off the plane before it had left the runway for disruptive behaviour.
The fans who were seated together and wearing blue Rangers shirts chanted songs during the first part of the flight until one of the other passengers asked them to stop hitting her chair.
‘A woman who was sat in front of them fans told them to stop kicking her chair,’ said the passenger.
‘It all went a bit crazy after that. They were very abusive and disruptive. They were being told to stop smoking and not to drink alcohol they had brought on board.
‘I went to the toilet at the back of the plane and as I came out there was an elderly woman who had breathing problems. The cabin crew gave her oxygen but close by there were two girls who were completely legless and arguing.
‘They were shouting and swearing and going up and down the aisle and had to be told to sit down and stop causing problems.
‘I went back to my seat and all you could hear were these fans chanting. The crew told them if they did not behave the plane would be met by police at Faro, but they took no notice.’
An hour into the flight the captain was given permission to land at Nantes where French gendarmes boarded and escorted three fans and the two women off the flight.
Passengers had a 75-minute delay before continuing with their journey.
A passenger on the early evening flight 9130 from Manchester to Faro told how trouble began before the Boeing 737 had even taken off with police having to speak with some of the fans (stock)
A general view of the Plaza de Espana in Seville ahead of Wednesday’s UEFA Europa League Final between Eintracht Frankfurt and Rangers at the Estadio Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan, Seville
Rangers fans gather at Glasgow airport as they depart Scotland ahead of the Europa League final on May 17, 2022 in Glasgow, Scotland. Rangers will face Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League Final being held in Seville on the 18th of May
Glasgow Rangers take on Eintracht Frankfurt in the big European final in Seville on Wednesday with around 100,000 Scottish fans expected to travel to Spain for the match
The passenger, who was travelling to her holiday home, praised Ryanair crew for the way they handled the disruptive passengers.
‘They did everything they could to calm the situation. Even after we left Nantes there were people who were trying to vape or smoke. The crew had to keep announcing smoking was banned and they should not drink their own alcohol.
‘There was a big groan when they said alcohol would not be served. Lots of people said they were going on their holiday and wanted a drink.
‘I was so glad when we landed and never want to go on a flight like that again.’
Thousands of Rangers fans have chosen to fly to Faro as it is only a two-hour drive across the Spanish border to Seville for the match against Eintracht Frankfurt.
As many as 50,000 fans are believed to be headed to Seville, but the club only have an allocation of 9,500 tickets at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan stadium.
Spanish police are braced for two nights of violence with thousands of ticketless German fans also heading for the Spanish city.
Fans of the German team clashed with West Ham supporters prior to their semi-final match last week.
A Ryanair spokesman said:’ A small number of disruptive passengers were removed from this Manchester to Faro flight. One passenger was removed prior to departure, and following a diversion to Nantes, a further five passengers were removed and met by police on arrival.
‘Another passenger who required medical attention onboard quickly recovered, did not require further medical attention, and continued to Faro.
Following a short delay of approximately 1hr and 15minutes, this flight continued to Faro where it landed safely at 22.04.
‘Ryanair apologies sincerely to passengers for the inconvenience caused by this delay.’
Female musician receives barrage of hate after slamming Rangers fans on their way to Europa Cup final for being drunk at the airport at 6am
By Shekhar Bhatia in Seville for MailOnline
A young BBC musician has told how she received a barrage of hate and abuse after she slammed Rangers fans traveling to tomorrow night’s Europa Cup final them for being drunk at the airport at 6am.
Iona Fyfe, 24, says she was trolled online by Twitter users calling her a ‘wh***’ after she tweeted about the behaviour of supporters at Glasgow Airport as she waited for her flight to the US.
Glasgow Rangers take on Eintracht Frankfurt in the big European final in Seville on Wednesday with around 100,000 Scottish fans expected to travel to Spain for the match.
But Ms Fyfe, who was a semi-finalist in the BBC’s young folk singers’ competition and has a first-class honours degree in traditional music, found herself under attack after she tweeted about some of the early drinking by supporters.
She wrote online: ‘The worst possible time to travel through Glasgow airport. Unruly pished (sic) fans of a particular club everywhere.’
She further tweeted that she had seen fans drunk even earlier at 3am and was then shocked at the abuse unleashed towards her.
In one tweet she was called a ‘Tiag ba*****.’
Iona Fyfe, 24, says she was trolled online by Twitter users calling her a ‘wh***’ after she tweeted about the behaviour of supporters at Glasgow Airport as she waited for her flight to the US
She wrote online: ‘The worst possible time to travel through Glasgow airport. Unruly pished (sic) fans of a particular club everywhere.’
Iona received a torrent of angry messages from disgruntled Rangers supporters and Twitter users
Another hateful message on Twitter said: ‘F***ing bint deserves all the abuse in the world. A vile scumbag so she is.’
Other abusive tweets labelled her ‘a dirty wh***’ and another public one-word message spelt out the hateful message in capital letters.
Another told Ms Fyfe to ‘go f*** yourself’
Ms Fyfe, speaking to Mail Online after she landed in Boston in the US, said: ‘ This is disgraceful. It is just horrible.
‘I simply said fans were unruly and drunk at 6am at Glasgow airport.
‘I am woman, a young woman, travelling alone and I’ve been now travelling for 24 hours and I’m horrified about what I’m reading.
‘I was 35,000 feet in the air when all this started and I’m just shocked at the length of people go to show their hate. ‘
She said she was sure the barrage of abuse levelled against her online was fuelled by sectarianism which is at the centre of the big rivalry between Glasgow’s top teams Celtic and Rangers.
She added: ‘ I am neither a Catholic and I do not support Celtic. I am an Aberdeen fan.
‘I am for an independent Scotland and self-determination and have said so in the past. This is all about politics.
‘But just because they parade around drunk with the Union Jack over their shoulders, doesn’t give them the right to call me a whore. I am appalled.’
The abuse has been reported to both Rangers Football Club and Police Scotland and came as videos emerged online apparently showing Rangers fans being escorted from flights.
Iona reported the abuse to Rangers FC, while political leaders voiced their disapproval of the fans’ behaviour
Another hateful message on Twitter said: ‘F***ing bint deserves all the abuse in the world. A vile scumbag so she is.’
Nikita Bassi, who is a caseworker for SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon defended the singer and tweeted: ‘I’m honestly appalled and disgusted by the misogynistic and abusive comments and messages Iona Fyfe has been receiving today.
‘To attack her because she stated that there were drunk football friends at the airport? Shame on you Rangers football fan club. Condemn this and take action now.’
Riot squad and bomb disposal experts are among 20,000 police officers drafted into Seville for the match with the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium which hosts the final, providing more than 1,000 private security officers.
Two separate fan zones for rival fans to watch the match on giant screens have been set up.
Three security cordons will restrict cars with anti-terror barriers, while others will have fencing, search and inspection points and armed officers accompanied by police dogs.