Ryanair hits back at couple who were booted off flight after ‘hack’ went wrong

RyanAir has issued a scathing remark to a couple who complained about being booted off a flight after not paying to reserve a seat.

Scott McCormick and his girlfriend, Helena Boshwick, 33, were due to fly from Birmingham Airport on May 1 to Palma de Mallorca, Spain, for a week-long holiday and gym-mentorship event.

The 33-year-old said they had not paid to reserve seats, which typically costs between £4.50 and £33 per seat, because it was a short two-hour flight and they didn’t mind if they didn’t sit together.

Everything went as normal, and the couple were first in the boarding queue when a Ryanair staff member asked them to step aside while the rest of the passengers boarded – and there was only one seat onboard.

The pair protested and were eventually put on the next flight together, but not without Ryanair making a joke of the situation.

Posting online, the airline wrote: ‘Today is a good day to separate couples onboard.’ 

The cheeky remark has garnered tens of thousands of likes and thousands of comments.

One commenter said: ‘You are the reason I only fly with you when I travel with my wife!’

Despite the airline’s seemingly joking take on the situation, Scott and his girlfriend said they will never fly the budget airline ever again.

Scott said there was ‘no compassion or care’ when they tried to sort out the issue, until they were told both tickets would be reimbursed if they went on the next flight together.

The couple reportedly had to fork out another £100 for the new ticket and waited around four hours to board the next flight to Palma.

Scott said he will now avoid flying with Ryanair due to the staff’s lack of compassion and empathy.

While a Ryanair staff member reportedly told the couple that a refund would be processed for one of the tickets, Scott claims he has still not received it or heard from the company.

A Ryanair spokesperson said: ‘This flight from Birmingham to Palma de Mallorca (1 May) was not ‘overbooked’ – it was scheduled to operate on a 737-8200 (197 seats) but for operational reasons had to be swapped to a 737-800 aircraft (189 seats).

‘Mr McCormick’s travel companion was not refused boarding but chose not to board and travel on this flight from Birmingham to Palma de Mallorca and was required to pay a Missed Departure fee (£100) to be booked onto the next available flight.

‘Mr McCormick was notified by email on the day of travel (1 May) that he was entitled to claim back reasonable receipted expenses, however Mr. McCormick has yet to submit any expense receipts to Ryanair.’

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