Ryanair holidaymakers stunned at pilot's midnight message as couple vows to 'never fly again'

They initially found themselves "standing on the tarmac" waiting to board the plane, which was currently undergoing an inspection.

One of them said: "We were made to stand there with no information at all, for nearly an hour, like sheep, with nobody telling us anything.

"Just after midnight, the pilot said there was a fault with the plane and that they were 'really sorry but the flight was cancelled'.

"He said Ryanair would provide hotels and refreshments and told us all to go back to the gate."

As the disgruntled couple was walking across the tarmac, they received a text message saying their next flight would be at 6.05am.

This was at about 1am by this point, the Manchester Evening News reported.

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They alleged travellers were herded into the terminal, where they encountered three airport workers.

One of the couple said: "There was no accommodation - we were told we would just have to wait there.

"By this point, the airport had closed, so there were no cafes or shops open.

"You can't expect people to sit there for six hours - what about giving people a drink and some refreshment? No one got anything."

The couple claimed that passengers were directed into the terminal, where they were greeted by three airport staff.

One of them stated: "There were 200 passengers - the elderly, disabled people, pregnant women - left to sleep on the terminal floor in the dark as they even turned the lights off."

By 6am, passengers were finally permitted to board the replacement aircraft.

One passenger said: "To make matters worse, they then charged full price for teas and coffees - after we had been up all night. It was chaos. You just couldn't write it."

The aircraft eventually left at around 6.30am, according to the couple, and touched down at Manchester Airport three hours later.

The couple concluded: "It was an absolute nightmare and we will never fly with Ryanair again."

A Ryanair spokesman said: "This flight from Faro to Manchester (September 17) was delayed due to ATC delays on the inbound flight to Faro; however, due to a minor technical issue with the aircraft, this flight was subsequently delayed overnight due to a strict curfew at Faro Airport and rescheduled to depart the following morning (September 18).

"Passengers booked on this flight received communications via email, SMS and PUSH notifications. Passengers were notified of the delay, advised of their options, and were issued with refreshment vouchers.

"Despite Ryanair's efforts to arrange accommodation for passengers, availability was limited, and passengers were advised that they could also arrange individual accommodation that they could claim back receipted expenses on Ryanair.com.

"This flight departed for Manchester the following day (September 18) at 6:05am local time."