Anger at Ryanair’s f lying toilet roll game at 30,000ft
Promised prize of free drinks never arrived
Michael O’leary recently pledged to make Ryanair ‘less irritating’ for passengers. But it seems one member of his cabin crew did not get the memo.
The steward annoyed travellers on the budget airline after organising a ‘fun’ toilet roll tossing competition on a flight from Manchester to Tenerife on easter Sunday.
and to compound their irritation, he promised a free bar to the row that managed to get the toilet tissue to the back of the plane first – but then failed to produce any free drinks.
Passenger chris Prudence told how travellers were split into two teams on either side of the aisle and played ‘six or seven rounds’ of the pass the parcel game at 30,000 feet, before the steward admitted he
‘Ended up charging for drinks’
could not hand out free drinks after all. Several passengers, including an elderly woman, were struck by flying toilet rolls and a complaint was lodged about the staff member’s ‘unprofessional’ behaviour.
Mr Prudence, 29, a DJ from Moreton, Wirral, said ‘all hell broke loose’ when the game began around two and a half hours into the flight to the canary islands.
‘i was sitting in my seat minding my own business when this blaring voice said, “Whichever team manages to get a toilet roll to the back of a plane first will win”,’ he said.
‘The prize was a free bar, which meant free alcoholic drinks to a flight full of lads and holidaymakers. But there were elderly people on board who just wanted quiet.
‘People had their hands in the air, flailing wildly, as this bundle, which was quite heavy, made its way down the aisles to the back of the plane. i wasn’t playing and the toilet roll hit me and a poor pensioner, who was nodding off when the roll bashed into her face.’
Mr Prudence said many passengers were furious when the free drinks failed to materialise. ‘The clown who worked for Ryanair said he was just joking after all that nonsense,’ he said. ‘Some of the passengers were getting really miffed and demanding the free bar.
‘after the game had stopped the crew said there was no free bar and ten minutes later brought out the drinks trolley and started charging for drinks.’
Mr Prudence said he would be complaining to Ryanair about its ‘unprofessionalism and disregard for the well-being of its passengers’.
a spokesman for the airline denied free drinks were offered on the flight but confirmed the game took place.
he said: ‘cabin crew were interacting with our customers and arranged a pass the parcel competition, but this was in a spirit of good fun, which Ryanair crews are encouraged to do.
‘While we are both surprised and regret that Mr Prudence may not have enjoyed this brief bit of fun, his claims of a “free bar”, a “quite heavy bundle” and “unprofessionalism” are simply untrue.’
in February, furious passengers called police after being left stranded on a delayed flight to Portugal for 11 hours without food.
last year Mr O’leary pledged to change Ryanair’s ‘c**p’ website and to make the airline, which has previously come under fire for hidden charges and high fares for baggage, less ‘irritating’ to travellers.