EasyJet passengers stranded at Montenegro’s Tivat Airport have described scenes of “absolute chaos”, claiming they were left without food, water or accommodation after a series of flight delays.
Among those affected is Dr Ron Roberts, 70, who said he had been stuck at the airport for more than 24 hours after his flight to London Luton was repeatedly delayed.
Dr Roberts told the Mirror that passengers had effectively been “abandoned”, alleging there were no EasyJet staff available to provide assistance as overcrowding worsened.
He said: “It was absolute chaos. They wouldn’t do anything. They left people without food or water.”
According to Dr Roberts, passengers were instructed to arrange their own accommodation after the airport closed for the night, despite being told there were few, if any, rooms available nearby.
“We were all thrown out of the airport,” he said.
“They said you’ve got to go and arrange your own accommodation and travel. Even though they’d already told us there’s no free accommodation in the area.”
After returning when the airport reopened, passengers were reportedly left waiting in a crowded departures corridor with little information about when they would be able to fly home.
Dr Roberts also claimed travellers were warned they would not be allowed back into the terminal if they left to buy food at a nearby café, the only available option for refreshments.
He described the conditions as “dangerously unhealthy”, saying one passenger had collapsed after revealing he was living with stage four cancer.
“I’m an old Liverpool fan, if you imagine trying to get into the Kop in the 1960s or 70s, the entire airport is like that… It’s rammed, suffocating, you can’t breathe here. It is dangerously unhealthy. And nobody cares.”
He added: “They’re not interested – it’s as if people’s health are expendable.”
EasyJet said the disruption began after the aircraft scheduled to operate the service suffered a bird strike on an earlier flight.
A spokesperson said: “Flight EZY2638 from Tivat to London Luton yesterday was delayed overnight due to the aircraft experiencing a bird strike on a previous flight. Unfortunately, the flight has been delayed departing today due to air traffic control restrictions.”
The airline said it had attempted to minimise disruption and advised passengers they would be reimbursed if they arranged their own accommodation because hotel availability was extremely limited.
“We have been doing all possible to minimise the impact of the disruption and while we always look to secure hotel accommodation, as there was very limited availability, we advised customers they would be reimbursed for booking their own.”
“Our customers’ safety and wellbeing is our highest priority and we are looking into the experience in the airport with our ground handling provider at Tivat, as this is not the level of support we expect for our customers.”
A Foreign Office spokesperson confirmed it was “in contact with the local authorities” regarding the situation at Tivat Airport.