Nervous passengers who asked for a glass of water at the end of a terrifying Ryanair flight were astonished, and appalled, when they were told it would cost them three euros (£2.65).
Holidaymakers were left clinging to each other or with their heads in their hands after a technical fault caused their plane to violently shake mid-flight.
The plane, en route from Murcia in Spain to Bournemouth, Dorset, on Tuesday, had to be diverted to Madrid due to the fault.
It took 20 minutes for the plane to reach the Spanish capital and then another 20 minutes circling the city, with the Boeing 737 shaking continually.
Retired driving instructor Clive Block, 70, from Poole, said his wife Bev, a counsellor (both pictured) were among those left terrified after a Ryanair flight ordeal, which saw the plane shake violently for 40 minutes. When they landed, Bev asked for a glass of water to calm her down – but a flight attendant told her she’d have to pay 3 euros (£2.65) for a bottle
Retired driving instructor Clive Block said his wife Bev, a counsellor, asked for a glass of water when they landed to help calm her down following the ordeal.
But she was told by a flight attendant she would still have to pay three euros for a bottle of water.
The 190 passengers later continued their journey on another Ryanair plane, which was then diverted 170 miles away to Birmingham due to an airport curfew at Bournemouth Airport.
The economy airline laid on taxis for all the passengers to take them to the south coast.
Mr Block, 70, of Poole, said: ‘The plane developed the fault about 30 minutes into the flight.
‘At first, it felt like turbulence because the plane just kept shaking. It was very scary and the plane went very quiet.
The plane (file photo), en route from Murcia in Spain to Bournemouth, Dorset, on Tuesday, had to be diverted to Madrid due to the fault. It took 20 minutes for the plane to reach the Spanish capital and then another 20 minutes circling the city, with the Boeing 737 shaking continually
‘It was quite violent and after a while there was an announcement and we were told there was a technical problem affecting control of the aircraft.
‘We were told it would be about 20 minutes to Madrid but we then circled for another 20 minutes before we landed, flanked by emergency vehicles.
‘The man next to me had his head in his hands – and my wife was clinging on to me. There was a massive cheer of relief when we finally landed.
‘I think the final straw was when Bev had a dry mouth when we landed and asked for some water and they said we had to pay for it.’
The couple were returning from a six-day holiday in Murcia to mark Bev’s impending retirement.
Bev added: ‘I was clinging on to Clive and we weren’t sure we were going make it. It was such a relief when we landed.
‘I asked for a glass of water and the steward came with a bottle and said that will be three euros. I thought it was appalling.
‘The least they could have done is provide us with free water and a meal for what we went through.’
The passengers eventually arrived back at Bournemouth at 7.30am yesterday – nine hours later than the scheduled landing time of 10.55pm on Tuesday.
A spokesman for Ryanair apologised to passengers for the delay, which was caused by a ‘minor technical issue’.
He said: ‘This flight from Murcia to Bournemouth diverted to Madrid after a cockpit warning light indicated a possible minor technical issue.
‘The aircraft landed normally, and customers disembarked and boarded a replacement aircraft which continued to Bournemouth.
‘However, due to an airport curfew, the flight was unable to land at Bournemouth and diverted to Birmingham, where customers were transferred to Bournemouth by coach.
‘Ryanair sincerely apologised to all customers affected by this delay, which was entirely beyond our control.’