A MUM has told how she was left fuming after TUI staff called her cancelled flight an “enjoyable day out”.
Sarah Butterworth had been heading to Greece for her 50th birthday after forking out £2,100 on the girls trip when they were met by airport chaos.
She says she “wanted to cry” when her flight was axed when she and her three friends stood at the check-in line.
Her group claim they had no prior warning that they wouldn’t be able to get on their flight to Parva.
She told The Mirror : "We had actually got to the airport and had just joined the queue when a woman with a clipboard came over and asked us where we were going.
"We told her and she said 'I'm sorry it's been cancelled five minutes ago'.
"We had been watching the news and it was saying they were cancelling six flights a day but that if yours was cancelled you would be told the night before.
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"We were checking our emails and phones and the flight constantly, and it kept saying it was still scheduled, they were sending us emails saying 'get ready for your holiday'.
"When they told us it was cancelled I was fuming, you feel like crying, I had to go outside because I was so angry."
'REALLY INSENSITIVE'
Sarah claims things got worse where TUI staff began to poke fun at her misery.
She said: "I said to one of the girls I bet you've been dreading coming to work today and she said 'oh no it's a day out, I've actually quite enjoyed it'.
"I said 'that's really insensitive' and that's when I had to leave the airport. She was only young but she could have chosen her words a bit better."
Although TUI have now offered her a refund, Sarah says the experience has turned her off ever flying with them again.
She said: "When they told us it was cancelled I was so upset I wanted to cry.
"If they had told us the night before we would have still been angry but at least we would have been able to get straight on the computer and start looking for an alternative.
"It was chaos at Manchester Airport, we weren't the worst off – there were wedding parties and I felt so sorry for them.
"By the time they had told us and we had turned back to the skylink to go, the queue had completely disappeared, I think everyone had gone home because there were only three flights leaving."
'OPERATIONAL ISSUES'
TUI say that Sarah's flight had been cancelled due to "operational issues".
A spokesperson said: "We’re incredibly sorry to those customers who have been impacted by the recent disruption to our operations.
"We understand that last minute delays and cancellations are incredibly disappointing, and we would like to reassure our customers that we are doing everything we can to get them on holiday as planned.
"We can confirm flight TOM2390 from Manchester to Preveza was unable to depart as planned on Wednesday, June 1, due to operational issues.
"Customers were notified via email and offered a full refund or the opportunity to re-book with an incentive.
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"We’d like to reassure customers that the vast majority of our flights are operating as planned, and we apologise again for the inconvenience caused."
The Sun has approached TUI for comment.
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