The four men were hauled off the Ryanair plane, which was originally headed from Dublin to Ibiza, but was forced to divert to Majorca following a series of disturbances on board
A Ryanair plane was forced to make an emergency landing after four ‘drunken’ Irish holidaymakers began causing trouble on board.
The men were hauled off flight FR9177, which was headed from Dublin to Ibiza, but was then diverted to Majorca following the disturbances. Police confirmed four passengers had been hauled off the aircraft and were now facing fines for breaching air security after being formally identified. The alarm was sounded just after 1pm on Saturday. A spokesman for the Civil Guard said: “Officers were asked to meet a plane heading from Dublin to Ibiza that had been diverted to Palma. Four Irish passengers on board the plane were removed and identified.”
A well-placed source added: “They were drinking alcohol they had bought before boarding the plane on board and causing problems on board by failing to follow instructions from the flight crew.” The police spokesman added: “We have no record of any assault on board. There were no formal arrests.”
The plane, which was set to land just after midday on Saturday, finally reached its destination just after 3pm local time. The four men hauled off the plane are understood to have been forced to make alternative arrangements to reach their holiday destination.
Ryanair called for a pre-10am booze ban at airports back in June 2018 after a group of drunken Irish-based holidaymakers forced a flight from Dublin to divert to Paris. It was reported at the time that a group of up to 20 holidaymakers were involved in the unruly disturbance – while three passengers were removed and detained by French police.
Standard procedure usually revolves around a formal identification of the person signalled as the cause of problems and taken off a plane so they can be handed a fine. The Spanish Air Safety and Security Agency (AESA) is the state body that in Spain ensures civil aviation standards are observed in all aeronautical activity in Spain.
It has powers to fine offenders for breaches of a Spanish air safety law, with fines for the standard type of breach ranging from around £50 to nearly £40,000. They can also be hit with the cost of any diversion, and face a flying ban with the airline.
In January 2018 a ‘drunk’ Irish woman and her partner were filmed being escorted off a Ryanair plane forced to make an unscheduled stop in the northern Spanish port city of Santander en route from Alicante to Dublin. Other passengers clapped and shouted out ‘Adios’ as the couple were led away by police.