It was complete chaos in sub-zero misery after a man and his family were left stranded in freezing, minus 10-degree conditions for two full days after their flight turned into a logistical disaster, reported the BBC.
Jon Shipman, along with his clan from Liverpool, England, had boarded a flight from London to Houston, Texas, to visit friends, when the routine trip spiraled into a nightmare.
Three hours into the March 31 flight, passengers were hit with a chilling announcement: the plane would make an emergency landing in St. John’s Newfoundland, Canada, due to a “grave medical emergency.”
A British family headed for Houston, Texas, to visit friends were force landed in Newfoundland, Canada’s subzero temperatures and waited for two days with no luggage — just the clothes on their backs — to take off again.
After landing, they were trapped on the plane for three hours.
Then came the next blow: a “technical issue” meant the plane couldn’t continue.
Peeved passengers were dumped into local hotels — with no luggage and only the clothes on their backs. Temperatures in St. John’s on March 31 were freezing, reaching a high of 24 degrees Fahrenheit and a low of 12 degrees, according to WeatherUnderground.
“Furious is an understatement,” Shipman told BBC Radio Merseyside, and said “we just sat around waiting for news, and had to speak to the local airport staff for updates.”
When they were told to return to the airport, they traipsed back, only to be told that they would be flown back to London.
The family took off from London’s Heathrow airport, never suspecting their flight would become cold and chaotic. Markus Mainka – stock.adobe.com
But, unbelievably, as they boarded, the flight was canceled — again.
“It’s ridiculous,” Shipman fumed. “It’s just so poor from British Airways … everyone was frustrated.
“Most of the frustration was due to lack of information. Just be open and explain what’s happening, you know, we’re not soft, we understand there was a medical emergency, we understand there was a technical issue.
“But then to keep fobbing us off.”
After two days, they got back on the plane and flew to their US destination.
In the end, British Airways apologized and offered each passenger a $669 voucher, adding that all expenses for lodging and meals would be covered.
“That’s not good enough,” snapped Shipman. “Our whole holiday is ruined.”
British Airways did not respond to The Post’s request for comment.