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Ryanair has expressed regret following an incident at Luton airport where an individual was denied boarding on a flight to Spain despite having a valid passport.
On Friday, December 8th, Mark Starkey, who is 51 years old, was scheduled to take the 6am flight to Alicante. His passport from the UK was issued on December 11th, 2013 and will expire on July 11th, 2024.
According to the post-Brexit regulations, a British passport must be no more than 10 years old on the day of travel to the European Union and have a minimum of three months validity on the day of intended return. Mr Starkey’s passport fulfilled these requirements.
However, a supervisor at the London airport claimed that the document was not valid and denied him boarding the plane.
According to Mr. Starkey, a top executive in educational technology, he successfully went through security and the departure gate check without any issues. He explained that the ground staff noticed that his passport only had three days left before it expired under the 10-year rule. He informed them that he was aware of this and that it was his final trip before renewing his passport.
She gave me permission to proceed and I began moving towards the aircraft. However, she then requested that I return and informed me that she needed to confirm with the immigration officials at Ryanair.
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“She contacted them and shared my information, but expressed doubt saying, ‘I don’t think he has the ability to fly.’ She hung up and informed me that my passport was invalid.”
I expressed my disagreement and requested to speak with a manager. The supervisor, who claimed to be in charge, denied my request to speak with the Ryanair immigration personnel. She insisted that only she had the authority to do so and maintained that my passport was not acceptable.
I was shocked when I encountered a complete lack of cooperation. I then had to make an effort to return through the airport.
After The Independent verified the validity of his passport, Mr Starkey traveled back to his residence in Buckinghamshire. The next day, he booked an easyJet flight and successfully flew to Spain using the same passport.
During the Brexit talks, the UK requested for British passport holders to be classified as “third-country nationals,” along with citizens from numerous other countries such as Tonga and Venezuela.
After the rule was implemented in 2021, Ryanair and easyJet continued to enforce incorrect regulations by stating that a British passport expires after nine years and nine months.
Following pressure from The Independent, both airlines complied with the Brussels regulations. The UK government, which had been providing inaccurate information on the matter, also fell into line.
The representative of Ryanair expressed remorse over Mr Starkey’s situation, stating that they were sorry for the incorrect denial of his travel by the handling agent at Luton airport. The handling agent had mistakenly believed that Mr Starkey’s passport was not valid for travel to the EU.
“All citizens of the UK who are traveling to the EU must adhere to the entry requirements listed below.”
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Passports must be issued no more than 10 years prior to the date of arrival in the EU.
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The passport must remain valid for at least three months after returning from the EU.
One of our Customer Service representatives will reach out to this passenger regarding the mistake made by our handling agent at Luton airport.
Furthermore, as per European air passenger regulations, Ryanair is obligated to reimburse Mr. Starkey for his flight expenses and cover any additional transportation expenses. In addition, they must provide £350 in monetary compensation.
Source: independent.co.uk
