Paris passengers offered UK flights as fog stays
PARIS passengers are facing days longer in France than planned, as travel misery continued into yesterday.
Nearly all flights were cancelled on Monday due to low cloud, which continued into yesterday.
Only a lucky few flights managed to get in yesterday morning, including two services that diverted to Exeter on Monday.
Disruption seems set to continue as the Met Office have warned of the risk of further fog today.
While all passengers said Aurigny were blameless for the fog, others noted communication problems and queried why emergency accommodation and travel advice appeared to be handled differently, depending on which flight passengers were on.
Aurigny has tried to get passengers on rescheduled flights or ask passengers to travel to other airports.
But that was not possible with the French route, which only runs twice a week.
Passengers in Paris had their flight finally cancelled at 8.40pm on Monday night after seven hours at the airport waiting for news.
Nikita Cheetham had been on a half-term break to Disneyland with her husband and two children. After their flight had been cancelled they found out they were apparently stuck in Paris until Friday.
After spending Tuesday morning trying to get through to Aurigny by phone and WhatsApp, they were offered flights to Gatwick with another carrier, but not until Thursday.
‘I think we are going to stay till Friday,’ said Mrs Cheetham.
‘I’m not a good traveller and nor is my daughter and to add an extra flight is causing added anxiety.’
She added that communication on Monday had not been timely or informative, but this had been understandable.
‘Today, communication has been far better,’ she said. ‘As much as one can expect anyway.’
Aurigny appears to have a leased an ATR aircraft from Eastern Airways to try and alleviate the problems.
G-CMEI left Newquay yesterday morning, landing into Guernsey just before 11am. It went on to help with early morning services between Guernsey and Gatwick before becoming stranded in London as fog thickened.
Planes made several attempts to land during the day, but many had to turn back, and no planes landed during the afternoon.
A passenger who has been stranded at Bristol Airport since Monday praised Aurigny’s prompt communication and service.
‘I, along with all other passengers on my flight from Bristol, were texted and emailed by Aurigny warning of potential delays, and then ultimately the flights cancellation,’ he said.
‘Staff at Bristol airport were very helpful, offering either a hotel or a taxi service depending on each person’s needs.’
Passengers across the UK could find themselves delayed even longer as Guernsey Met said that fog was very hard to forecast with certainty.
‘The fog we are currently experiencing is essentially just low level cloud at ground level,’ a Met Office spokesman said.
‘There is just a few hundred feet margin from being in fog, to not being in fog.’
