'It was carnage - it's been grim but we just have to try and make the best of it'
manchestereveningnews.co.ukA teacher stranded in Italy who budgeted for a three-day break said 'it's been grim' after her flight was delayed by a WEEK due to a fault with the UK’s air traffic control system. Helen Smith, 30, is among hundreds of passengers who were left trying to find a solution after scores of flights were grounded from the technical fault on Monday Bank Holiday (August 28), which Transport Secretary Mark Harper said was the worst incident of its kind in 'nearly a decade'.
Helen has endured huge queues, hours of travelling via train and a hotel stay in a place she labelled as 'likened to Fawlty Towers' in a bid to get a flight back to Manchester Airport and get home in time before the start of the new school year.
The issue started after a technical glitch meant flight plans had to be input manually by controllers. It has since been resolved, but disruption is set to continue in the coming days. Try MEN Premium for FREE by clicking here for no ads, fun puzzles and brilliant new features. But for Helen, from Forsbrook, in North Staffordshire, she knew she had no option but to get back in time for her job at St Wulstan's Catholic Primary School, in Wolstanton, on Monday, September 4.
The 30-year-old had flown to Milan last week for a three-day city break with two friends. After "hours and hours" of delays on Monday, her easyJet flight back to Manchester was cancelled while one of her friends - who is from London and was travelling back separately - also saw her BA flight axed.
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