According to the ANA – Aeroportos de Portugal page on Monday, the 30th of June, 11 cancellations were registered (between arrivals and departures) at Madeira International Airport – Cristiano Ronaldo.
The constraints, resulting from the adverse weather conditions that affected the airport operation throughout the day, gave rise to several indignant reports from passengers who ended up ‘staying on the ground.’
In addition to the case of the passengers of the easyjet flight diverted to Lisbon, who were stranded for six hours inside the aircraft, DIÁRIO also received complaints from a passenger on the Ryanair flight (FR 6050) bound for Porto.
The flight was eventually cancelled after suffering successive delays, without proper assistance being provided to passengers, including “people in wheelchairs, babies and cancer patients,” who waited for hours, allegedly without knowing “whether or not they would be booked into a hotel overnight. Many received no support, no food or drink, or an explanation of what was happening.”
“It was cruel seeing children, the sick, and the elderly suffering the way they did.” Said an anonymous passenger.
Please note, the article did not specify which airline was affected.
At 16:20 today (1st of July), newspapers reported that 14 flights had been cancelled and 12 had been diverted. ANA urges people to check the status of their flights before travelling to the airport.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com
