RYANAIR has launched a private criminal prosecution through the Spanish courts against a passenger who disrupted a flight earlier this year.
The service from Lanzarote to Santiago de Compostela was hit with a 40 minute departure delay after a man, who claimed to be a United Nations diplomat, had to be dragged off a plane.
The unruly passenger had to be kicked off the flight by the Guardia Civil after attempting to take a front row seat that was not assigned to him and becoming verbally abusive when crew asked to see his boarding card.
Ryanair fumed the chaos caused “unnecessary disruption” to 137 passengers on January 17.
And as Ryanair today filed a criminal case against the disruptive passenger, the carrier pledged to clamp down on troublemakers causing turbulence.
A Ryanair spokesperson said: “It is unacceptable that passengers, many of whom are on a family holiday, are suffering unnecessary delay as a result of one unruly passenger’s behaviour.
“Yet this was regrettably the case for passengers on this flight from Lanzarote to Santiago in January, during which a disruptive passenger caused a departure delay due to his misconduct.
“We have initiated a private criminal prosecution against this passenger, in which the court may impose a sentence of 3-12 months imprisonment or a fine of 6-18 months’ salary. These are just some of the potential consequences under Ryanair’s zero tolerance policy for passengers who disrupt flights.
“We hope this example will deter further disruptive behaviour on Ryanair flights, so that passengers and crew can travel in a comfortable and respectful environment as is their right.”
Ryanair insisted it has “a strict zero tolerance policy towards passenger misconduct” and pledged to take “decisive action to combat unruly behaviour for the benefit of all passengers and crew”.
The flier added: “Ryanair will continue to uphold its commitment to providing a safe and enjoyable travel experience for everyone.”
Earlier this year, Ryanair bosses took a “disruptive passenger”, who forced a flight to divert, to court seeking €15k in damages.
The incident occurred on board a flight from Dublin to Lanzarote on April 9, 2024, when a disruptive passenger forced a flight to divert to Porto.
On touchdown in Porto, the disruptive passenger was offloaded and arrested.
Six crew members and over 160 passengers were forced to stay overnight in Porto Airport – with the cost of accommodation, meals and more being funded entirely by Ryanair, the airline said.
Holidaymakers had their Lanzarote getaway cut short by one day as a result.
DISRUPTION COSTS
The low cost airline also had to provide an additional aircraft and crew to operate the delayed return flight from Lanzarote to Dublin, which took place the following day.
The airline’s €15k claim covered the cost of excess fuel, accommodation, Porto Airport landing and handling fees and the loss of inflight sales.
Ryanair said it would also cover replacement crew costs and Portuguese legal fees.
A spokesperson for Ryanair said at the time: “None of these costs would have been incurred if this disruptive passenger had not forced a diversion to Porto in order to protect the safety of the aircraft, 160 passengers and six crew members on board.
‘GOVERNMENTS FAILING TO ACT’
“European governments repeatedly fail to take action when disruptive passengers threaten aircraft safety and force them to divert.
“In this case, the Portuguese prosecution ruled that because the aircraft and the passenger are Irish, this case should be transferred to Ireland.
“Ryanair is therefore taking a civil proceeding against this passenger in the Irish Courts to recover these costs, which were incurred wholly and exclusively as a result of the disruptive passenger’s behaviour, which caused not just a diversion, but an overnight in Porto of over 160 passengers and six crew member and the operating aircraft.”
