Mum misses flight as she claims 'Jet2 never said final call'

Megan Patrick was attempting to fly home to Newcastle from Palma in Mallorca last month on July 24 when her 12.10pm flight was delayed.

The 35-year-old says she monitored the departure board closely and made her way to the designated gate 'in 11 minutes' after she saw it had updated to say the flight was boarding.

However when the mum and her two children got there, says she was informed she was too late to board the flight - despite claiming she made her way to the gate as soon as the departure board had updated.

Megan says she was 'upset' and her four-year-old daughter was 'hysterically crying' as they 'begged' to be let on the plane - which she claimed still said 'boarding' and not 'final call'. But after a member of Jet2 staff went to double check with the captain, the family-of-three were refused boarding.

The beauty salon owner had to fork out for new flights home, leaving her 'stranded' in the entrance of the airport with 'no food' for her children until she was able to check in later that evening.

Megan says she returned more stressed from the four-night getaway than she when she left, and the experience has put her off booking future holidays with her children. Megan says she has since complained to Jet2 but is yet to receive a response.

Jet2 said that flight delays are 'always communicated very clearly' and they advise passengers to 'check departure boards regularly'. The airline pointed out that all other customers boarded the aircraft in time.

Megan from South Shields, Tyne and Wear, said: "The lady at the gate scanned my passport and then made a comment like 'you are lucky to be getting on this plane because otherwise you wouldn't be travelling'. "I apologised and said we came as soon as the information had been updated.

"I handed her the kids' passports and she said we were too late and we couldn't get on the plane. "I was thinking it couldn't be true because we'd gone straight there - there weren't even any queues we had to walk through.

"The kids were really upset, I got really upset and we were begging to be let on the plane. "The plane was literally there, they'd left the doors open so there was no reason at all why we couldn't have got on.

"It wasn't showing final call, it was literally showing still boarding and the plane door was open. "We went back and forth for about 10 minutes. The kids were absolutely screaming."My four-year-old was hysterically crying. We were just begging her to let us on the plane."

Megan says the Jet2 staff member went to ask the captain if they could get on to the flight but they were refused boarding - and informed that she would need to pay for new flights back to Newcastle.

Megan said: "I didn't know where to go, I had the two kids who were in tears. "I was holding my four-year-old because she was crying, I had two hand luggage bags and the stroller so I was trying to navigate my way through the airport which was a massive struggle.

"I thought they were just going to put us on another flight but then when we got to the Jet2 desk they asked us to pay for new flights.

"Obviously it wasn't our fault but they were arguing that it was the airport's responsibility to update the information and that it was nothing to do with Jet2."

Megan says that she managed to find cheaper flights online but faced an agonising wait until 9.30pm to fly home - without any food for her children. Megan said: "We were literally stuck in the doorway bit of the airport.

"There was nowhere to get food, I literally had nothing for the kids and we couldn't go anywhere. "We went outside for a little walk to see if there was anything nearby but obviously the airports not next to anything.

"We were just in the middle of nowhere really until we could check in at 6pm and then the flight that we had booked was delayed again." Megan finally landed back in Newcastle at 3am on July 25 - after spending 15 hours stranded in the airport.

She believes both Jet2 and Palma airport are to blame for the departure board updating too late. Megan said: "I think it's definitely something with the boards in the airport but I've heard from other people who were following the Jet2 app and that hadn't updated either.

"The staff that were representing Jet2 with happy to help badges on were anything but happy to help. "The main issue was how badly it was dealt with and how little they were willing to help.

"I was really upset and distressed and they actually had smiles on their faces which is not what you expect from Jet2 at all." Megan says her children, nine-year-old Theo Edwards and four-year-old Saffia Edwards, 'have been on more planes than buses' but the experience has put her off booking another trip.

Megan said: "It's put me off going on holiday abroad in the future. "We travel quite a lot, my kids have been on more planes than they have buses. "Normally when I get back I'm excited to book something else and at the minute I couldn't think of anything worse.

"It's given me massive anxiety around travelling with them, especially on my own. I'm a single parent and to just not have any help from anybody - it's really put me off. "I don't see myself booking to travel on my own again and it's such a shame because we love to do that.

"It's really worrying that things like this can happen. "It almost wasn't worth going away for those few days, I think I was more stressed when I got back."

A spokesperson for Palma airport said: "All flight information is provided by the airline. The information on the screens was provided by the airline."

A Jet2 spokesperson said: "We are sorry to hear about Ms Patrick's experience. Any flight delays are always communicated very clearly, and we always advise customers to check departure boards regularly if they are in the airport terminal.

"We are investigating this matter further, however we can confirm that all other customers boarded the aircraft. We have been in contact with Ms Patrick and are discussing the matter with her."