lowfaresbuster
11th Oct 2005, 13:09
From Irish Independent- registration required (http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=9&si=1485506&issue_id=13121)
Fans in boycott of flight home
Irish fans cheering their team to victory in Cyprus last Saturday but a number of fans have had little to cheer about on the difficult journey home.
Mid-air incident on Helios flight leaves group of supporters stranded in Cyprus
A GROUP of worried Irish soccer fans were still stranded in Cyprus last night after refusing to fly home on a charter jet.
The 39-strong party of supporters who had watched Ireland's 1-0 win in Nicosia on Saturday have told Helios airline they would not board any of its Boeing 737 aircraft after a mid-air scare on Sunday morning.
In August, another Helios B737, en route from Larnaca to Prague, crashed northeast of Athens with the loss of all 121 people on board. It is thought the air conditioning failed, incapacitating the pilots, cabin crew and passengers.
The Irish fans say were about 50 minutes out of Larnaca airport en-route to Glasgow when the jet developed air-conditioning problems, forcing the captain to turn back and make an emergency landing.
The Irish were among 246 passengers on board and were to due to catch an onward Aer Lingus flight from Glasgow to Dublin. Travelling home with them on the jet were Irish fans living in Scotland.
Last night the Scots were still in Larnaca Airport trying to find alternative flights home, many of them low in funds.
Tullamore tour operator Tony Bernie, who organised the €789 week-long "package" for the Irish party, was trying to resolve the problems. He said he had already spent at least €20,000 funding accommodation and food for the stranded group, which includes around 10 women. He had also given then spending money.
Mr Bernie told the Irish Independent the fans had been "terrified" by their experience and he had refused to allow them on any other Helios flight.
He also claimed the jet involved was the same aircraft that was forced to turn back to Gatwick airport last week after a similar malfunction to its air-conditioning system.
Passengers on the flight had told him the air conditioning had first been very hot and then very cold before the aircraft turned back.
FLIES
Dubliner Mark Warnock (22), who was on the flight, said they had noticed "flies in the cabin and water dripping from the air conditioning".
He also claimed the pilot emerged "shaking" from the cockpit after the jet landed during the full-scale emergency.
After refusing to fly with the airline, he said Helios had told them that if they did not take a flight to Dublin yesterday they would have to make their own way home.
This morning Mr Bernie is hoping to find seats on a scheduled flight to Malta for the group, with a connection by Aer Lingus to Dublin.
Frank Khan
Fans in boycott of flight home
Irish fans cheering their team to victory in Cyprus last Saturday but a number of fans have had little to cheer about on the difficult journey home.
Mid-air incident on Helios flight leaves group of supporters stranded in Cyprus
A GROUP of worried Irish soccer fans were still stranded in Cyprus last night after refusing to fly home on a charter jet.
The 39-strong party of supporters who had watched Ireland's 1-0 win in Nicosia on Saturday have told Helios airline they would not board any of its Boeing 737 aircraft after a mid-air scare on Sunday morning.
In August, another Helios B737, en route from Larnaca to Prague, crashed northeast of Athens with the loss of all 121 people on board. It is thought the air conditioning failed, incapacitating the pilots, cabin crew and passengers.
The Irish fans say were about 50 minutes out of Larnaca airport en-route to Glasgow when the jet developed air-conditioning problems, forcing the captain to turn back and make an emergency landing.
The Irish were among 246 passengers on board and were to due to catch an onward Aer Lingus flight from Glasgow to Dublin. Travelling home with them on the jet were Irish fans living in Scotland.
Last night the Scots were still in Larnaca Airport trying to find alternative flights home, many of them low in funds.
Tullamore tour operator Tony Bernie, who organised the €789 week-long "package" for the Irish party, was trying to resolve the problems. He said he had already spent at least €20,000 funding accommodation and food for the stranded group, which includes around 10 women. He had also given then spending money.
Mr Bernie told the Irish Independent the fans had been "terrified" by their experience and he had refused to allow them on any other Helios flight.
He also claimed the jet involved was the same aircraft that was forced to turn back to Gatwick airport last week after a similar malfunction to its air-conditioning system.
Passengers on the flight had told him the air conditioning had first been very hot and then very cold before the aircraft turned back.
FLIES
Dubliner Mark Warnock (22), who was on the flight, said they had noticed "flies in the cabin and water dripping from the air conditioning".
He also claimed the pilot emerged "shaking" from the cockpit after the jet landed during the full-scale emergency.
After refusing to fly with the airline, he said Helios had told them that if they did not take a flight to Dublin yesterday they would have to make their own way home.
This morning Mr Bernie is hoping to find seats on a scheduled flight to Malta for the group, with a connection by Aer Lingus to Dublin.
Frank Khan