Ryanair UK: Flight from Dublin Airport to Lanzarote forced to divert to Morocco due to 'disruptive' passenger

A Ryanair flight from Dublin Airport to Lanzarote had to be diverted to Morocco after one of the passengers became "disruptive" on board yesterday morning (Wednesday 6 December). The incident caused the flight to divert to one of Morocco's major cities, Agadir.

Once it landed in the local airport the plane was met by Moroccan police on the runway and policemen removed the disruptive passenger and took them into custody. The disruption caused by the passenger "is now a matter for [Moroccan] police". The flight continued to Lanzarote and arrived "with a short delay". 

A spokeswoman for Ryanair told Dublin Live: "This flight from Dublin to Lanzarote (December 6) diverted to Agadir when a passenger became disruptive onboard. Crew called ahead for police assistance and the aircraft was met by local police upon arrival who removed the disruptive passenger. The flight continued to Lanzarote following a short delay."

It comes after a Ryanair flight heading from London Gatwick to Morocco was forced to divert and make an emergency landing at Faro in Portugal on Tuesday morning (5 December) after the pilot fell ill. 

Portuguese paper Correio da Manha said the pilot had told passengers before landing that he wasn’t feeling well and the diversion triggered a ‘red alert’ at the airport. The 18 passengers on board were forced to wait at the Algarve airport to take off again. A spokesperson from Ryanair told The Daily Mail: “There was no ‘emergency landing’. This flight from Stansted to Morocco diverted to Faro when one of the pilots became ill. The aircraft landed normally, and passengers were transferred to an alternative aircraft operated by another crew before continuing to Morocco.”