A British holiday maker is stuck at a Moroccan airport and had to queue for over 24 HOURS for a flight home.Olive Loveridge-Greene, 26, was enjoying a holiday in the North African country when the Coronavirus pandemic took hold.She was due to fly back today (March 18), but tried to check the status of her flight with RyanAir before heading to the airport.But she couldn't get any info and was advised by the British Embassy to head to the airport in Marrakesh - and when she arrived Olive faced an 800 person long queue.Olive, a media worker from Bristol, said: "I'm tired.
I I arrived at the airport at about midday yesterday, 24 hours ago."I came off the back of the embassy advice, people have heard nothing from Ryanair and there's contradictory advice out there."The embassy is saying to go straight to the airport and there are floods of people waiting here."When you call the airline you are either hung up on or told to visit a website that tells you to try the airport."When I arrived I was met with a 700 to 800 person queue, I moved about 10 metres throughout the day."Olive said she queued for hours but struggled to make any progress, and was nowhere near the front when the RyanAir checkin desk closed.Determined to get home, Olive stayed in the airport over night and slept in the queue - waiting for the desk to reopen in the morning.She continued: "The check in desk shut at 8pm, it's been frustrating.
I slept at the airport, on the floor. "Because people left when the desk closed I was about person 300 in the queue and I didn't want to give up my spot."The aircon was on and it was freezing.
I had to use my towel to cover me, I put my cap over my face to block out the light."People are panicking and chatting to calm themselves down, I couldn't really sleep."Eventually, Olive was able to check in for her 7.30am flight - only to then find out that the plane had been delayed.She added: "I eventually managed to check in this morning and I was given a boarding pass. "When I went through to departures a man checked my pass and ticked my name off a list."I had heard the plane was delayed and I asked him if it was true, and if the plane would be cancelled, and he said it was possible."The plane was supposed to leave at 7.30 but nothing yet."Olive said that she has been struggling to get information while at the airport, and that others in the same situation are panicking.She added: "I've got notifications from the embassy, they said airlines are fighting for airspace."My flight has been delayed to 3.30, I'll have been here for 27 hours by that point."I really hope it goes, with the government flights they are been described as an emergency but you have to pay £300 to get on.
You don't have to pay for an ambulance, and that's an emergency."I'm fortunate that I got a spot on the flight, because I don't have that money."It feels like the airlines and the embassy are passing the buck, for passengers to fork out money to get back home is disgusting."I'm part of a WhatsApp group called UK Returnees (in waiting) and in there people are saying there have been flights going with empty seats."For every 500 messages there's one glimmer of hope.
It's just people asking what's going on."People are being just like headless chickens.
I thought I was clueless but no one knows what's going on."
A British holiday maker is stuck at a Moroccan airport and had to queue for over 24 HOURS for a flight home.Olive Loveridge-Greene, 26, was enjoying a holiday in the North African country when the Coronavirus pandemic took hold.She was due to fly back today (March 18), but tried to check the status of her flight with RyanAir before heading to the airport.But she couldn't get any info and was advised by the British Embassy to head to the airport in Marrakesh - and when she arrived Olive faced an 800 person long queue.Olive, a media worker from Bristol, said: "I'm tired.
I I arrived at the airport at about midday yesterday, 24 hours ago."I came off the back of the embassy advice, people have heard nothing from Ryanair and there's contradictory advice out there."The embassy is saying to go straight to the airport and there are floods of people waiting here."When you call the airline you are either hung up on or told to visit a website that tells you to try the airport."When I arrived I was met with a 700 to 800 person queue, I moved about 10 metres throughout the day."Olive said she queued for hours but struggled to make any progress, and was nowhere near the front when the RyanAir checkin desk closed.Determined to get home, Olive stayed in the airport over night and slept in the queue - waiting for the desk to reopen in the morning.She continued: "The check in desk shut at 8pm, it's been frustrating.
I slept at the airport, on the floor.
"Because people left when the desk closed I was about person 300 in the queue and I didn't want to give up my spot."The aircon was on and it was freezing.
I had to use my towel to cover me, I put my cap over my face to block out the light."People are panicking and chatting to calm themselves down, I couldn't really sleep."Eventually, Olive was able to check in for her 7.30am flight - only to then find out that the plane had been delayed.She added: "I eventually managed to check in this morning and I was given a boarding pass.
"When I went through to departures a man checked my pass and ticked my name off a list."I had heard the plane was delayed and I asked him if it was true, and if the plane would be cancelled, and he said it was possible."The plane was supposed to leave at 7.30 but nothing yet."Olive said that she has been struggling to get information while at the airport, and that others in the same situation are panicking.She added: "I've got notifications from the embassy, they said airlines are fighting for airspace."My flight has been delayed to 3.30, I'll have been here for 27 hours by that point."I really hope it goes, with the government flights they are been described as an emergency but you have to pay £300 to get on.
You don't have to pay for an ambulance, and that's an emergency."I'm fortunate that I got a spot on the flight, because I don't have that money."It feels like the airlines and the embassy are passing the buck, for passengers to fork out money to get back home is disgusting."I'm part of a WhatsApp group called UK Returnees (in waiting) and in there people are saying there have been flights going with empty seats."For every 500 messages there's one glimmer of hope.
It's just people asking what's going on."People are being just like headless chickens.
I thought I was clueless but no one knows what's going on."
