Radio 2 star Rylan Clark shared a series of unfortunate events that happened on his flight back from Spain with his beloved mum Linda, including a malfunctioning engine
Radio presenter Rylan Clark revealed his flight “nightmare” as his journey home from a brief Spanish getaway was plagued with problems, leaving him worried he’d miss his BBC Radio 2 programme.
The former X Factor contestant had jetted off to Marbella for a quick break with his cherished mum Linda, but their return to London turned into a comedy of errors.
The homeward trip encountered multiple setbacks, including faulty air conditioning, engine troubles and frustrated passengers threatening to abandon the aircraft, which Rylan amusingly recounted alongside his mother’s experience.
Telling the tale to his BBC Radio 2 colleague Sally Boazman yesterday (Saturday, August 8), he revealed: “I didn’t think I was going to be here. I had a nightmare yesterday.
“About half an hour after we’re supposed to board, everyone’s like: ‘What’s going on?’ Basically the women went ‘there’s a problem with the air con on the plane. On the way out it just went off so it’s just sweating for everyone. They’re just fixing it now,'” reports the Manchester Evening News.
“Everyone’s like: ‘How long’s that going to be?’ They say ‘seconds’.”
The 36 year old explained that another hour passed with passengers eventually sitting on the floor before being told the aircraft was ready.
However, matters deteriorated further when they boarded and discovered the left engine had failed due to a computer glitch, according to the pilot.
He revealed: “Basically there was a problem with the computer, it’s not firing the left engine. It’s a software error.
“They had to switch the plane off for seven minutes. Everything is turned off, it’s silent. I’ve never been on a plane like this before.”
Rylan revealed that they had been aboard the aircraft for two hours when one family began insisting they wanted to disembark.
He described the scene: “One family want to get off. I’ve never seen anything more British than a plane of people turn against a family.
“We all knew every single bag had to be put onto the runway to find their four bags. That’s taken another hour. They’ve run out of water.
“Then the mechanics go: ‘We’ve managed to get the engine working.’ Then they said they need to re-fuel because they’ve left the plane on for so long.”
Rylan quipped he could have travelled to Dubai and back given the extensive hold-up.
He concluded the tale by revealing they arrived home “safe and sound” at London City Airport just before 10pm, barely avoiding a diversion due to the airport’s 10pm curfew.
Despite the gruelling day for Rylan and his mother, he heaped praise on the aircraft’s captain and crew who helped make the nightmarish journey from Malaga Airport back to London more tolerable.