Friday 27 May 2022 05:22 PM Disabled man left stranded on a plane for TWO hours vows never to use ... trends now
A disabled man who was left stranded on a plane for two hours has vowed never to travel through Manchester Airport again.
Ray King, 68, who has osteoarthritis in both knees and one hip, landed on a Jet2.com flight from Dalaman, Turkey, at 4.45pm earlier this month.
Ray's wife Pauline had pre-booked assistance to help him from the aircraft and through the hub as he cannot negotiate steps or walk long distances.
However, on landing and after all other passengers had disembarked, Ray claims both they and another couple waited a further two hours for staff from assistance agency ABM - despite repeated attempts from the cabin and crew to speed up the process.
The plane had been due to fly out again to Sicily at 6.15pm but the delay meant the next set of passengers didn't get going until after 8pm, says Ray.
In the meantime, he says he was taken by ambulift to the terminal, where, with the support of his wife, he had to tackle the walk to passport control on foot as no wheelchair was made available, despite having requested one.
It comes days after BBC journalist Frank Gardner was left in a similar situation when there were not enough staff at Heathrow Airport to get his wheelchair, leaving him stuck on an aircraft.
Ray King, pictured here with his wife Pauline, was stuck on a Jet2.com plane at Manchester Airport for two hours awaiting assistance
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News Ray said during his ordeal at Manchester Airport was a huge contrast compared to his experience in Turkey.
'Despite needing a wheelchair to negotiate the many areas of the airport I was dumped at a door and told "there is the lift",' he said. If it hadn't been for my wife's help I would have been helpless.
'Both Jet2.com captains, the one who flew us in and the one who arrived to fly the next passengers out, were amazing and really tried to help. I don't blame the airline, they tried their utmost.
'When they finally got us they had no wheelchairs after the ride to the terminal so I just had to walk a bit, sit down, then walk again, and suffer with the help of my wife.
'We will never fly through Manchester Airport again. It was the complete opposite at Dalaman, they couldn't help enough.
'We live equal distance to Newcastle and Leeds and we go away three times a year. We've always travelled from Manchester but we will not do that again.
'Even in the terminal there were no lights on and we had to shout to get the passport control guy.
'Our baggage was just plonked on the floor and my wife had to go hunting for it. No explanation, no staff.'
Ray said the staff on the plane were 'amazing and really tried to help', but despite there best efforts he was left there for more than two hours. Pictured is a Jet2.com aircraft (file photo)
A Manchester Airport spokesman said Mr King had
