'Flight turnaround took shine off family holiday'

An Isle of Man passenger travelling with her young son on a plane - which was returned to Liverpool after landing - says the experience has taken the "shine off our family holiday".

Although Sunday's EasyJet flight from Liverpool arrived on the island as planned, passengers were left onboard for more than an hour before being told it was too windy to use the steps to disembark.

Giselle Dee, who was with husband Charlie and three-year-old son Hendrix after a trip to Tenerife, said while some passengers remained calm, others were "very upset".

Isle of Man Airport said winds meant the steps "could not be safely deployed", while Easyjet said customers had the option of rebooking or a refund.

Ms Dee said: "We were originally booked on the ferry at 14:00, but that got delayed and, as we have got a three-year-old, we thought we just need to get home, so we paid £450 to book the flight."

Passengers were initially told the plane would wait for winds to die down, and that the stairs could be used in wind speeds of up to 40 knots (46mph) but it was 45 knots at the time. They were then told they would need to return to Liverpool.

She said while the flight was waiting at Isle of Man Airport, one passenger was having a panic attack, while another was throwing up.

"But, I think the most frustrating part," she said, was "we were told on the flight that we would have help when we got off the plane and somebody would be there to talk to us, but nobody was there".

"We basically just had to sort it all out ourselves," she said.

"We spent over a grand just to get back to the Isle of Man," she explained, which included changing from the original ferry to the flight, the hotel, Monday's ferry from Heysham to the Isle of Man, transport from Liverpool to Heysham and food.

"Travelling back to the Isle of Man is always a problem, and it just takes the shine off having a really good holiday," she added.

EasyJet said it had done "all possible to minimise the impact of the weather" but safety was its "highest priority".

In a statement, the airline said customers were provided with the option of rebooking or receiving a refund, as well as hotel accommodation and meals for those who required them.

"While this was outside of our control, we are very sorry to customers for the inconvenience caused," it added.

Isle of Man Airport added: "Variable wind conditions meant that flights were affected differently", with other flights cancelled or diverted.

Geoffrey Pugh, interim airport director, said: "We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused to passengers as a result of yesterday's high winds.

"These were unusual circumstances and safety must always come first."

Read more stories from the Isle of Man on the BBC, watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer and follow BBC Isle of Man on Facebook and X.