STRANDED passengers saw huge delays at Birmingham Airport after an emergency landing prompted a runway closure.
The runway was out of action for around three hours on Saturday (June 16) afternoon after a flight from Rejkjavik in Iceland to Madrid was forced to land at the airport after an engineering fault.
The aircraft landed at around 2pm and airport staff had to perform inspections and closed the runway.
The runway reopened at around 4.30pm but chaos ensued as airlines tried to reschedule flights.
Some flights were delayed for over 24 hours.
Birmingham Airport, in a series of Tweets, wrote: “Birmingham Airport can confirm that the D86241 landed safely with 152 crew and passengers on board. Birmingham Airport’s fire service is in attendance as a precautionary measure.
“If you are travelling today please check the arrivals and departures page on Birmingham Airport website.
“The D86241 from Reykjavik to Madrid was diverted in to Birmingham Airport due to a hydraulic issue.
“Passengers and crew have been taken to the terminal where they are being assisted by Birmingham Airport.”
It tweeted at 4.30pm to say the runway was open and to expect delays to flights.
In the period of confusion that followed, angry passengers criticised the lack of communication from airline companies while waiting to hear news about flights.
Hundreds of passengers were forced to sleep at the airport and wait patiently in long queues.
Some airline companies provided overnight accommodation while vouchers were handed out for the airport shops.
One passenger tweeted: “But the runway re-opened at 5.30pm yesterday – all other carriers managed to get their flights and crews together and leave.
“Only Tui cancelled their flights and we are now 24 hours delayed – still waiting for confirmation – absolute shambles.”
TUI sustained heavy criticism from passengers with the hashtag ‘#tuidoesntcare’ emerging on Twitter – after seeing delays in excess of 24 hours.
A TUI update on Twitter read: “We understand how frustrating a flight delay can be and we would like to thank customers for their patience and understanding at this time.”
