Ryanair is known for having its fair share of rowdy passengers, though this is on a different level…
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Ryanair passengers have inflight rave on Edinburgh to Ibiza flight
Daily Record has the story of a Ryanair flight from Edinburgh (EDI) to Ibiza (IBZ), where chaos erupted onboard. While this flight allegedly took place in late September, it’s only now getting media attention. That’s because some passengers had filed a complaint with the airline, but only received a form response on November 26. So a couple is now coming forward with their story, and even video footage from onboard.
According to passengers, there was a group of roughly 70 travelers who were partying the entire flight, making it three hours of “horrific” travel hell. It’s not just that this group was excited to go on vacation, but they were partying in the aisle, blasting music on speakers, downing full-size bottles of spirits that were purchased at duty free, and harassing other passengers.
Here’s how a passenger describes what the atmosphere was like onboard:
“There was no control over that plane at all. It was horrific from the minute we got on. There were about 70 of them who all came from the same area. They had a big black speaker at the highest volume you could get which was blaring for three hours.”
“They were banging on the roof, taking their tops off, and opening their drink that they had bought at duty free. The only time Ryanair came near them was to serve them more drink. I didn’t even want to go to the toilet because they were getting drunker and drunker.”
“My husband went to the bathroom and on his way back, this guy hit my husband’s hand as if to do a high five but then gave him the fingers. The other passengers were getting really annoyed at this behaviour and it could have erupted into a full-blown war.”
“People were scared to go to the toilet but they were scared they were going to get head-butted or hit with a bottle of Grey Goose that was flying about that they had bought at duty-free.”
Based on video footage shared of the flight, it would appear that this situation was every bit as bad as it’s being described, and that this wasn’t an exaggeration.
This is terrible, even by Ryanair standards
Look, I feel bad for Ryanair flight attendants, and they deal with a lot — they don’t even work directly for the airline (rather they work for a third party, to maximize productivity), and at least historically they’ve had a quota of how many scratch cards and drinks they have to sell per day.
It’s one thing if passengers are having a little bit of fun (as often happens on Ryanair), but everything points to passengers on this flight having completely crossed the line. Heck, consuming your own alcohol is a violation of aviation regulations. These passengers weren’t even subtle about it — they were drinking out of handles purchased at duty free.
The crew allegedly didn’t do much to manage the situation — the flight didn’t divert, and police didn’t even meet the flight. When Ryanair customer service responded, the couple claimed that the company “took no responsibility and gave no assurances that it wouldn’t happen again.”
According to the traveler:
“The response from Ryanair was a joke. I didn’t expect any else though to be honest. They’ve got you there because it’s cheap flights but even though it’s a bargain, you shouldn’t have to go through that. Passenger safety comes first.
“When we went to land, there was a storm which was bad enough. The air hostess was shouting over the speaker to sit down or the plane wasn’t going to land because they were all still standing up.”
“There were no police waiting for them at the airport. I understand that they were happy and excited about going on their holiday. I’ve flown to Ibiza for the last 16 years to the same wee place. I’ve seen a bit of partying on the flights before but nothing like this.”
A Ryanair spokesperson had the following to say regarding this incident:
“A group of passengers on this flight from Edinburgh to Ibiza became disruptive mid-flight. To diffuse the situation and minimise any disruption to passengers, crew made several announcements throughout the flight and refused to serve more than two alcoholic drinks to each passenger. Passengers ceased their disruptive behaviour before landing safely in Ibiza.”
So Ryanair’s defense is that the crew only sold two additional drinks to each passenger who was already consuming their own alcohol? C’mon…
Bottom line
An Ibiza-bound Ryanair flight in late September had some unbelievably poorly behaved passengers. There was allegedly a group of 70 people who were partying in the aisles, playing their own music on speakers, consuming their own duty free alcohol, and taking their tops off, while the crew did very little to manage the situation.
Maybe I need to book a Ryanair flight to Ibiza next summer. I feel like it would make an interesting review…
What do you make of this Ryanair incident?
"Heck, consuming your own alcohol is a violation of aviation regulations."
Is it really? Which particular regulation were you thinking of? To my knowledge it is just violating most airlines "house rules" or conditions of carriage but not any formal regulatory rule.
hard to be a priest in the whore house , what was the clergy doing in ibiza anyways? these kids were corrupted from trainspotting as toddlers and never had a chance
I have travel with Ryanair to different destination. It can get very fast very bad. They let people who visible have consumed already alcohol board on their plains and then you can see how flight attendants are trying to sell them alcohol. Couple of times it has ended the same people go out of control end of the flight and all the other passengers are in danger and stuck on the plain until the arrival...
I have travel with Ryanair to different destination. It can get very fast very bad. They let people who visible have consumed already alcohol board on their plains and then you can see how flight attendants are trying to sell them alcohol. Couple of times it has ended the same people go out of control end of the flight and all the other passengers are in danger and stuck on the plain until the arrival of the police. It's really big problem when traveling with Ryanair. I usually have my 3 kids with me and the funny thing is that a lot of flights where I travel they are not able to serve tea or coffee because they say they have no hot water, and it's rear case u can buy food on the airplane but they always have alcohol and Loto
For me the only thing Ryanair did wrong is not having them arrested on landing. Not sure what more they could have done.
Doesn't surprise me... Ryanair just wants bums on seats...once they e sold the tickets, customer service goes out the window...a truly awful airline
Shocking there was a drunk aggressive man and his girlfriend on a Ryanair flight from bari to Dublin.they were having problems with himand he took a swipe at some poor man.they let him stay on when he should have been thrown off as people were scared of him..they put him at the back of the plane and he snogged the face of his girlfriend and thankfully fell asleep.it is frightening for the passengers the airline...
Shocking there was a drunk aggressive man and his girlfriend on a Ryanair flight from bari to Dublin.they were having problems with himand he took a swipe at some poor man.they let him stay on when he should have been thrown off as people were scared of him..they put him at the back of the plane and he snogged the face of his girlfriend and thankfully fell asleep.it is frightening for the passengers the airline should not allow these people on .why have they no control.il never Fly with them again
you get what you pay for...
I would suggest enough complaints to the civil aviation authority on such flights would cause Ryanair to be more responsive.
Everywhere you read about people complaining about Ryanair but still people choose to fly with them, for the price of an evening out they could pay extra fare and fly with a more grown up airline.
This is not next level this happens all the time and often involves fighting.
Ryanair were in a difficult position and to a great extent they did the best thing and that was not to escalate the situation. I'm afraid the experience was not good for other passengers but could have seriously got worse.
My friend and I usually go twice a year may and August been going for years used to travel with monarch now they were flights from hell travelling from Manchester at 2 50 am nearly all the passengers were 3 parts cut before we set off girls with there rollers in there hair . Then they went burst Ryanair came along we have had a couple of bad flights with drunks but if you want...
My friend and I usually go twice a year may and August been going for years used to travel with monarch now they were flights from hell travelling from Manchester at 2 50 am nearly all the passengers were 3 parts cut before we set off girls with there rollers in there hair . Then they went burst Ryanair came along we have had a couple of bad flights with drunks but if you want cheap flights thats the price you pay .Ibiza has some real stict laws now no booze cruise and drinking on the beach there are plenty of police about we usually stay in San Antonio I've seen it all in all the years I've been going won't put me of and I'm 70
Are you sure you weren't typing this while drinking a handle on Ryanair yourself?
Breathalysers at the gate set to acceptable aviation limits (because we all like a pre-flight drink when in a holiday mood) . If it was known that ALL airlines had this policy, things might change. These travellers were probably tanked up before boarding. Aviation rules specify that if are deemed to be intoxicated, in the event of an emergency, you become a liability to yourself and your fellow passengers and will not be permitted to fly.
Had a similar experience on a flight to Budapest in November '22. Air hostess said it was the worst flight she'd ever been on. She threatened getting the police involved at one point, but, to be honest, even that was risky for her as it could so easily have turned violent and she would have had a HUGE problem on her hands then. Basically the Air hostesses and the other passengers just put their heads...
Had a similar experience on a flight to Budapest in November '22. Air hostess said it was the worst flight she'd ever been on. She threatened getting the police involved at one point, but, to be honest, even that was risky for her as it could so easily have turned violent and she would have had a HUGE problem on her hands then. Basically the Air hostesses and the other passengers just put their heads down and simply hoped we'd manage to land without a serious incident or plane crash.
I will NEVER travel with Ryanair again..
You get what you pay for.
Just so disrespectful acting like animals . No need. Ryanair are absolutely rubbish airline we will never fly with them again . Get some control over some animals at a rave. So .
These people could have booked any flight to ibiza and used any airline, staff was out numbered and in that situation wouldn't have been much they could have done.. there was no calming the idiots down although letting them off the plane with no warnings or actions for their behaviour is bad.. they should have got a fine before being allowed to leave the airport! Not fair on the rest of the passengers or airline staff at all!
They are fortunate I was not on that flight.
Looks much worse than that Sunwing flight from Canada to Cancun last winter, when the partying passengers were refused return travel on the airline.
Nobody defended the passengers then.....
What a bunch of uptight wankers. “Terrified”?? Because some young people were having a good time? News Flash: none of them were at the controls of the jet or physically harming anyone. You are going to a large island… let the good times roll!
Well most of the other passengers certainly won't having a good time. What gives them the right to screw up everyone else on the flight
Ryan Air - the company that wanted to allow passengers to stand up (strap hang) during flights to get even more people on board.
A 3 hour party - sounds like Ryan Air at their worst.
Why did Ryanair didn't divert on route to Manchester or Liverpool to let those people off??
cheap is cheap for a reason
When you book a holiday look at what airline is going to be flying you 3 flights with them as the carrier has shown me how close that they come to being worse then Albania Air.
People would play a premium for this type of flight to ibiza!
@Ben yes absolutely you need to book a Ryanair flight to Ibiza next summer and complete a trip review.
One Molly At A Time
We had the same from Manchester, absolute nightmare, we complained and got a comment of ' thanks for the feedback ' we have flown several times this year and are now boycotting Ryan air, the staff are young and have no authority...
Is there any video available?
Terrorized? Really. Looks like a bunch of young people having fun. Maybe the stodgy old farts should fly on BA next time.
Or maybe have some respect, you're probably one of them! Shouldn't you be on your way to your McDonald's shift btw
Take a hike Jon I am probably older and definitely wiser than you
I feel less bad after my kid barfed landing in Mallorca on Ryan air after a 2 hour on tarmac delay in Barcelona in 95 degree heat with no A/C. Thankful for the lovely other passengers who helped us.
That definitely calls for a diversion, were the pilots unaware of the situation?!? surely they wouldn't have felt if was a safe situation to continue flying.
Exactly how is it unsafe? The pilots were in full command of the aircraft behind steel reinforced doors. ?
Spread the American way of dealing with things.
I cannot ever remember reading about a domestic US route in which a substantial portion of the passengers routinely became severely inebriated, open BYOB bottles, intimidate other passengers, and so on. A single passenger doing this, a la the person who assaulted that WN flight attendant, perhaps. But routintely, and en masse? No. And I've certainly never experienced it personally, whereas I have sat in front of...
Spread the American way of dealing with things.
I cannot ever remember reading about a domestic US route in which a substantial portion of the passengers routinely became severely inebriated, open BYOB bottles, intimidate other passengers, and so on. A single passenger doing this, a la the person who assaulted that WN flight attendant, perhaps. But routintely, and en masse? No. And I've certainly never experienced it personally, whereas I have sat in front of drunks on a European flight from BRU-BCN (Brussels Air, not a LCC).
If the "American way of dealing with things" prevents this kind of behavior, I'm all for it.
Another broken logic that is plaguing American right now.
I cannot remember any pirate complaining about global warming. It gets better, the fewer number of pirates, the higher global temperature.
If the "American way of dealing with things" prevents global warming , you should sail the high seas and raid cargo ships.
Solving humanity problem, one degree at a time.
That’s why I fly a full fare airline to Ibiza to avoid the ultra low cost carrier circus flight.
Yep. The BA city flights for the win
I'm not sure I like Lucky's alternative either; escalate the situation and divert? At best, FAs are up against 70 to 8. The woman has a valid complaint but she'd be glad there was no diversions, 'cuz once Ryan Air diverts, they're just gonna leave you on a hard bench with no alternate flights for 2 days.
This looks like a fun flight and I'd love to join but one should order a private jet for this kind of staff. As much as I don't like making a big deal of people having fun, this seems big enough to warrant a diversion and escorting those people out.
*stuff of course :)
People are surprised? It's Ryanair for f**k sake!
I wouldn't say for on a Ryanair flight if you paid me.
correction: I wouldn't set foot on a ryanair flight if you paid me.
damn autocorrect.
The same thing happened to us on a Ryanair flight from Manchester to Tenerife in October. 2 people were told to get off the plane before we took off as they were drunk drinking their duty frees, & when we were in the air a stag party & a hen party joined, drinking far too much & singing Laughing at stupid things. The young steward said he had never seen anything like it before ,...
The same thing happened to us on a Ryanair flight from Manchester to Tenerife in October. 2 people were told to get off the plane before we took off as they were drunk drinking their duty frees, & when we were in the air a stag party & a hen party joined, drinking far too much & singing Laughing at stupid things. The young steward said he had never seen anything like it before , he was uncomfortable & if they started fighting there was nothing he could do & he was frightened too.
We both agreed that there should be marshalls on board. Disgusting behaviour.
That’s called efficiency. Where can I sign up?
Me: This should never happen.
Also Me: Man, that flight looks fun. I wish I was on it.
They can't even spell “defuse” correctly, so how can we expect Ryanair to do the sensible thing when an indefensible situation like this happens onboard one of their flights?
Great job @OMAAT
"the flight didn’t divert, and police didn’t even meet the flight."
Spread the American way of dealing with things. Let's give the cabin crew unlimited power with zero checks and balance. A junkie with feathers is considered an immediate threat that needs to be neutralized.
Uhm, have you seen the video? Read the passenger account? 70 drunk yobs being much more than a nuisance, potentially putting the flight at risk. If this happened at your home's doorstep, wherever in the world that might be, you'd be calling the police to complain about drunk and disorderly conduct – or whatever the national equivalent is where you live.
PS, I'm not an American myself, very much a European who would've been calling...
Uhm, have you seen the video? Read the passenger account? 70 drunk yobs being much more than a nuisance, potentially putting the flight at risk. If this happened at your home's doorstep, wherever in the world that might be, you'd be calling the police to complain about drunk and disorderly conduct – or whatever the national equivalent is where you live.
PS, I'm not an American myself, very much a European who would've been calling the police myself to file a criminal complaint against these schmucks if I'd been on that flight.
@Mike
You should move to America, you'll fit right in. And don't forget to call the cops on your neighbor because they're having a barbecue or shoot any person who is standing on your property.
Your Karen excuse is "putting ..... at risk"
A commercial airliner isn't your doorstep aka. private property.
You are flying Ryanair to Ibiza.
Nuisance? totally agreed.
Potentially putting the flight at risk? far from happening.
There...
@Mike
You should move to America, you'll fit right in. And don't forget to call the cops on your neighbor because they're having a barbecue or shoot any person who is standing on your property.
Your Karen excuse is "putting ..... at risk"
A commercial airliner isn't your doorstep aka. private property.
You are flying Ryanair to Ibiza.
Nuisance? totally agreed.
Potentially putting the flight at risk? far from happening.
There probably isn't much Ryanair can do at that moment.
But I'm quite sure diverting is just adding fuel to the fire.
@Eskimo
Don't gaslight. This would be far from a Karen situation. According to you, there was nothing to be done, just suffer for three hours?
This is exactly what a Karen would do, expect diversion, expect police.
Do you think there is much can be done with Trump or Biden? Or is it just suffer for four years, each.
Would I enjoy the flight? no. Would I be angry? likely. Do I expect Ryanair to do something? hell yes. Is there really anything Ryanair can do? No. After years of suffering and minding your own business, suddenly Brandon crashes your...
This is exactly what a Karen would do, expect diversion, expect police.
Do you think there is much can be done with Trump or Biden? Or is it just suffer for four years, each.
Would I enjoy the flight? no. Would I be angry? likely. Do I expect Ryanair to do something? hell yes. Is there really anything Ryanair can do? No. After years of suffering and minding your own business, suddenly Brandon crashes your party what can you do.
It's definitely a Karen for calling the cops and feel life threatening from juveniles being juveniles.
Things like Ryandare could have done. 1) Refrain from serving the 2 more drinks. Why on earth did they give further alcohol to malevolent individuals. 2) Warned the rowdies that the police would be waiting if they didn’t calm down. Follow up the threat with arranging for police to met the flight. 3) Ban those who broke rules from future flights.
Crew in the US have exactly the same autonomy as in Europe. An individual could potentially be restrained, however not a group.
At the very least they should have been met by security on arrival and placed on a blacklist.
From a safety perspective very little the crew could do to de-escalate the situation other than a verbal warning. A diversion would have been a costly last resort, although offloading the disruptive passengers...
Crew in the US have exactly the same autonomy as in Europe. An individual could potentially be restrained, however not a group.
At the very least they should have been met by security on arrival and placed on a blacklist.
From a safety perspective very little the crew could do to de-escalate the situation other than a verbal warning. A diversion would have been a costly last resort, although offloading the disruptive passengers would have been the best option in that case.
I guess they were booked as a group it would be easier for Ryanair to ID them, however not do if individually booked.
I think this would have happened on any airline to Ibiza, particularly from the UK. Not even the pilot would stand a chance against 70 yobs.
Then maybe it's time for airlines to reconsider service to Ibiza.
Maybe it's time to reconsider service from UK. My trip to Ibiza from Spain did not have any parties
I've had a similar flight on a Friday from Stansted. The cabin staff continued to serve drinks to them and not once did they try to calm the situation. This is Brits abroad at it's best. Everyone has had enough of this drink and drug culture in the Balearics.
They should be sent straight back to UK when they act like animals.
"to maximize productivity"
Er, I think you meant to write "so that Ryanair avoids employment obligations"
Or does it enable them to avoid limits on cabin crew hours because they are "units provided by the third party" rather than people ?
This is normal behavior on flights to Ibiza.
A flight from an UK country to Ibiza. What could go wrong?
36 year old me has no interest in that anymore and I’d be pretty annoyed (though I’d never go to Ibiza at my age). HOWEVER that video shows obnoxious behavior … not behavior that actually threatens anyone’s safety. Maybe there were altercations not captured on video. It’s fair to be annoyed that Ryanair allowed this to continue, but it seems like a bit much to say you were worried for your physical safety.
That much alcohol mixed with that much testosterone is very volatile and is the perfect situation to produce a bar fight. If it were a bar on the ground, I would leave since I don’t want to get hit by a thrown beer bottle or sucker punched. In a plane, you literally can’t leave and there are no police that can enter and break things up if people start swinging at each other. It threatens...
That much alcohol mixed with that much testosterone is very volatile and is the perfect situation to produce a bar fight. If it were a bar on the ground, I would leave since I don’t want to get hit by a thrown beer bottle or sucker punched. In a plane, you literally can’t leave and there are no police that can enter and break things up if people start swinging at each other. It threatens people’s safety in the way someone waving around a gun threatens people’s safety. It could go off at any time and it might be pointed at you when it happens.
Reminds me of that country jingle by Dierks Bentley, Getting Drunk on a Plane
European regulators honestly have allowed these low-cost airlines in particular Ryanair to get out of control. They do as they please and there is no oversight. It's literally an accident waiting to happen.
Ryanair flight s are cheap but does that give passengers the right to act like football Holligans. Any other form of transport it would not be tolerated. Ryanair shoild take a lot of the blame for this behaviour plying idiots with drink