Passengers on the British Airways flight from Malaga that was diverted to Heathrow Airport last Friday have questioned Stanley Johnson’s version of events.
They were on board aircraft BA2641 from Malaga on Friday 28 June. The Airbus A321 was supposed to fly to Gatwick, but as the plane approached Sussex airport, the runway was closed because another British Airways flight refused to take off.
During the 50-minute closure of Sussex Airport, 16 flights were diverted, including the flight from Malaga that landed at Heathrow.
The pilots wanted to refuel as quickly as possible and continue on to Gatwick.
Writing for The IndependentMr Johnson said that when the plane landed, the captain “invited all passengers without luggage in the hold to disembark at Heathrow if they wished to do so”.
He continued: “That sounded like a very good idea to me.
“I took my luggage from the overhead bin and walked to the front entrance of the plane. Two other passengers joined me and the three of us stepped out of the door onto the top metal staircase that was already there.”
However, other passengers questioned Mr Johnson’s account – particularly the captain’s statement that anyone who wanted to could disembark.
One of them, Annemarie, told The Independent: “I can categorically confirm that the pilot did not announce that passengers with hand luggage could disembark after landing at LHR (Heathrow).
“It was only later, after some passengers insisted on getting off, that this announcement was made.”
Her report was confirmed by another passenger, Richard Davenport. He said The Independent: “Upon arrival at Heathrow we were informed that the aircraft was being parked and the next steps were still being confirmed.
“The pilot then announced that the aircraft would be refuelled after parking and a slot for Gatwick would be requested.
“The pilot later confirmed that a 20-minute window had been provided and fuel had arrived.
“At this point, Mr Johnson picked up his bag, walked to the front of the plane with a female passenger in tow and demanded to disembark.”
Mr Davenport said that after another 15 to 20 minutes, the pilot “made an announcement that he could not prevent the passengers from departing if they refused to fly”.
Other passengers decided to leave. In the meantime, the airport police had been called.
Mr Davenport then said: ‘The pilot informed us that we had missed our time slot and that there were now problems because passengers wanted to disembark and had luggage in the hold.
“Half an hour later the pilot said that all luggage had to be removed for safety reasons and at that point BA decided to cancel the flight.
“All passengers left the plane and 95 percent of us had to collect our luggage and take a bus back to Gatwick.”
The aircraft, based in Gatwick, then completed the 19-minute flight with only the crew on board, but the planned onward flight to Cyprus and the associated return flight were cancelled.
Mr Davenport concluded: “It was Johnson’s action that caused the pilot to deviate from his plan to refuel and fly to Gatwick and the subsequent delay in rectifying this issue led to the cancellation of the flight.”
Mystery surrounds the passenger who attempted to leave the plane at Heathrow with Mr Johnson.
He described her as “bordering on hysteria” and reported that she said, “There’s no way I can go back on the plane.”
“I just lost my husband in a plane crash. This morning I had to struggle to get on the plane in Malaga. I just can’t imagine getting on it again now, for another takeoff and another landing. No, I won’t. I absolutely won’t.”
Mr Davenport questioned this report, saying: “She had enjoyed the flight from Malaga to London without any problems, so I am not sure where the sudden fear of flying came from.”
“I admit, however, that I did not speak to her – I just sat across from her during the three-hour flight and she happily watched a movie on her phone.”
Unfortunately, the circumstances under which the passenger lost her husband are also unclear.
British Airways could face compensation claims of over £200,000 if the airline is found responsible for landing the flight at Heathrow (rather than Gatwick) and cancelling the flights to Cyprus.
According to air passenger rights, compensation is paid when there is a delay in arrival of three hours or more or a cancellation of a flight by the airline. For journeys of this length, this compensation amounts to £350 per passenger.
Assuming an average payload of 200 passengers, BA’s bill would be £210,000 if each passenger on the three affected flights were successful in making their claim.
The Independent has reiterated its request for comment from British Airways. So far, the airline has only said the following about the incident: “Due to an earlier incident at Gatwick, the flight was diverted to Heathrow where it was aborted.”
Mr Johnson was asked for comment.
