Seventeen-year-old girls on their first trip without parents were left stranded in Edinburgh after their return flight to Belfast was cancelled due to a crash-landing at Belfast City Airport. Aer Lingus provided limited support, leaving parents to arrange alternative transport for their children.
A group of teenagers taking their first trip away without family were left stranded in Edinburgh after their return flight to Belfast was cancelled. Mum of one of the girls, Zoe Stephenson-Gracey, told Belfast Live the 17-year-olds had travelled to the Scottish city for one day to see the Christmas Market with a return flight booked around 9pm on Sunday.
But following a crash-landing at Belfast City Airport involving an Aer Lingus plane, all flights in and out of the airport were cancelled, sparking havoc for many travellers. While Aer Lingus is understood to have provided Ballyclare girl Grace and six of her pals with a hotel on Sunday night, we were told the airline offered just two of the seven teenagers a new flight home - but not until after Christmas - and £177 (€213) for the other five to pay for alternative transport. Forced to take matters into their own hands to get their kids home for Christmas, one parent forked out over £800 (€964) for easyjet flights 'out of their own pocket to bring them home safely'. Zoe said: 'They weren't helpful. They didn't even find out that Belfast City Airport was closed until the parents were texting. They got sent to different gates - but we knew they wouldn't be flying because Belfast was shut.' When they were finally told their flight was cancelled, Zoe says, 'they didn't know where they were going or if they had to stay over, they just got told they couldn't stay in the airport'. 'There was a lack of communication from Aer Lingus,' she added. 'It was her first weekend away with her friends - there were seven of them and they are only 17. They were just having one night away to do the Christmas market and shopping. It was their first time away without their parent
TRAVEL DISRUPTION AER LINGUS BELFAST CITY AIRPORT CRASH-LANDING TEENAGERS
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