easyJet flight removes 19 passengers who flew back to Britain from Lanzarote because the plane was TOO HEAVY
- The flight was scheduled to depart at 9:45 p.m. on Wednesday, but left around 11:30 p.m
- The pilot also said bad weather conditions were also a factor
An easyJet flight removed 19 passengers flying back to Britain from Lanzarote because the plane was ‘too heavy to take off’.
The flight from Arrecife Airport in Lanzarote to John Lennon Airport in Liverpool was delayed due to the weight of the aircraft and poor weather conditions.
The plane was scheduled to take off at 9:45 p.m. on Wednesday, but did not depart from the Spanish airport until about 11:30 p.m.
In a video sent by a passenger, the pilot said, “Thank you all for coming today. Because there are so many of you, it’s quite a heavy plane.
‘That heavy aircraft in combination with a fairly short runway and with the current unfavorable conditions here in Lanzarote means that the aircraft is too heavy to take off. I sat with my senior first officer and we have a lot of experience with this and have done this before.
In the video, passengers can be heard softly saying “I want to go home tonight” and shaking their heads. The plane was scheduled to take off at 9:45 p.m. on Wednesday, but did not depart from the Spanish airport until about 11:30 p.m.
“With safety as our number one priority, the current wind conditions make it impossible to get this aircraft airborne. There are a number of factors – it’s very hot, the wind isn’t great, the direction isn’t great.
Now you may be wondering what happens next and that’s what I’m here to say. I’ve talked to our operations team and the only way to solve a problem with a heavy plane is to lighten it up a bit.
“If possible, I would ask up to 20 volunteers not to fly to Liverpool tonight. If someone wants to volunteer, there will be an incentive. The current number we have been given by easyJet is a maximum of €500 per passenger who does not want to fly tonight.’
You can hear passengers saying softly “I want to go home tonight” and shaking their heads.
According to easyJet’s flight tracker, the delay was due to ‘bad weather conditions in Lanzarote’.
According to easyJet’s flight tracker, the delay was due to ‘poor weather conditions in Lanzarote’ (stock image)
The flight tracker said it would depart at 9:45 p.m., but did not take off until 11:24 p.m. He arrived at John Lennon Airport just after 3am yesterday.
An easyJet spokesman confirmed to the Liverpool Echo that 19 passengers had volunteered to disembark the plane.
The spokesperson said: ‘easyJet can confirm that 19 passengers on flight EZY3364 from Lanzarote to Liverpool voluntarily wanted to travel on a later flight last night because the aircraft exceeded weight limits for the weather conditions.
“This is a routine operational decision in these circumstances and for safety reasons there are weight restrictions on all airlines. In the event that a flight were to exceed the weight limits, we ask passengers to voluntarily transfer to a later flight free of charge, which was done on this occasion and volunteers are compensated in accordance with the regulations.
“The safety and well-being of our passengers and crew is always easyJet’s top priority.”