Brits stranded at resorts for days after TUI cancels flights due to IT outage

Scores of holidaymakers found themselves abandoned in sun-soaked European locations following the catastrophic global IT crash that saw dozens of key computer systems fail worldwide

Dozens of families from Scotland, currently on break in places such as Turkey and Cyprus, were left in a state of chaos after travel giant TUI scrapped flights back to the UK without prior warning. Many complained that the company didnt notify them in time about the axed flights caused by the crippling Crowdstrike IT system failure last Friday.

Fuming passengers who turned up at Turkey’s Antalya airport and Cyprus’s Larnaca airport shared tales of being left in limbo for countless hours with zero updates from staff, only to receive late text messages stating TUI had cancelled their return trips.

The Crowdstrike meltdown has wreaked havoc worldwide, knocking out airline operations, halting banking systems, paralysing businesses, and leaving TV stations off air. Experts have now raised alarms that the devastation caused could continue to wreak havoc for “weeks” more, reports the Daily Record.

Wishaw granny Pauline Clements was vacationing in Turkey with her relatives when they were caught in the mayhem. Their flight back to Glasgow set for July 19 was dropped after two postponements.

After enduring prolonged waits at Antalya airport, Pauline described how her family was herded onto a bus ‘like cattle’ and taken to a packed hotel with scores of other stranded flyers. They’ve managed to secure seats on a flight scheduled for today.

Talking to the Daily Record, 64-year-old Pauline shared the distress of her family, which includes her three little grandchildren, saying they have been failed by TUI having faced ‘atrocious’ customer service.

Pauline recounted her harrowing experience: “We were loaded onto a bus like cattle and dumped at a hotel after waiting for hours. The TUI reps dropped us off and left.”

The situation deteriorated when they reached the hotel, as she explained, “When we went into the hotel, the staff said they didn’t have enough rooms for us.

“Several families were left to share rooms with strangers so we all had somewhere to sleep. We had to sort the situation out for ourselves because TUI abandoned us. It was awful.”

She also detailed the abrupt notice given by TUI for another move: “I received a message at 11.38am on Monday to say we had to be ready by 12pm to move hotels. We’ve had to travel two hours to a new hotel but haven’t been given information about where we are going.”

“The whole situation has been totally unacceptable. We have been massively let down by TUI.”

Andy Anderson, set to return on the same flight as the Clements, shared his experience of being stranded: “We were kept in the dark for almost a day before being told on Sunday morning that we would be flying home on Tuesday – four days after we were due to return home.

“We were taken to a hotel and told to relax as we would be here until we flew home.”

However, the relief was short-lived: “TUI reps showed up yesterday to tell us we have to check out. We’ve no idea where we are going or what facilities we will have.

“There are people here with young children, with health conditions who have been badly let down. Disappointment doesn’t even cover it.”

Billy Buchanan found himself in a bind at Antalya airport after his flight was axed, leading to him and his family being shuffled between three different hotels since Saturday.

“It’s been a shambles. Families have had to share rooms and other families have been separated and moved to other hotels. I was due back at work today so I’m losing out on money. It’s not ideal,” he said.

Meanwhile, Charlene Mennie experienced similar chaos in Cyprus, with her Glasgow-bound flight from Larnaca being scrapped four days ago.

Charlene blasted the TUI reps for their lack of updates, stressing the financial hit she’s taking as she can’t get back to her job. She vented: “It’s very frustrating. The communication has been so poor. We will have been stuck here for five days.

“We were due to return to work and are both having to take unpaid leave now till Thursday. I’ll be asking TUI about compensation.”

In response to the turmoil, a TUI UK spokesperson extended an apology to those affected by the widespread IT failure that led to numerous delays and cancellations. They said: “Whilst the original IT issue was outside of our control the impact, alongside air traffic control restrictions over the weekend, meant we had to cancel some flights and delay some return flights home.

“We understand how frustrating this would have been and recognise that many of these delays happened when our customers were already at the airport.

“We would like to reassure customers that if they are currently overseas our TUI team will look after them and flights home provided. We will continue to update customers with more information and can confirm that if a return flight time has changed we will contact them directly 24 hours before departure.

“We thank our customers for their understanding and continued patience.”