A UK airline has drawn intense criticism after a "minor technical issue" caused a flight to be delayed for three days.
British Airways flight 2036 was headed to London from Orlando, Florida on Thursday (local time), but it was grounded for 24 hours due to technical issues, The New York Post reports.
The airline booked hotel rooms for the more than 200 passengers who had bought tickets for the flight, and the plane successfully took off on Friday evening.
- Police Minister blasts airport staff after plane delayed
- Private plane loses door mid-flight in Queenstown
- Terrifying footage shows flight's brush with catastrophe
However, soon after taking off the plane was diverted to New York City as a precaution after a "minor technical issue" was detected, the airline said in a statement.
It was bad timing for the unfortunate passengers - local hotel capacity was limited because of the New York City Marathon which was on that same weekend.
After landing in JFK Airport, passengers from the flight had little choice but to sleep on the floor of the terminal.
Those who took to social media to complain say they were not provided with any food, and that the airline didn't communicate clearly with them about the situation.
Most of JFK's food outlets were closed overnight, and there were no British Airways staff on call to let passengers know when they could expect to board another flight to London, Newsweek reports.
Passengers got no response from the airline's official social media accounts until they were finally on board a replacement aircraft. The troubled flight 2036 finally touched down at Gatwick International Airport on Sunday - three days after its expected arrival.
British Airways says the company is sorry for passengers' inconvenience, but denies that they were abandoned at the airport with no food or bedding arrangements.
"We appreciate that this was an exhausting and frustrating experience for our customers, and we have apologised for the long delay to their flight," the airline said in a statement.
"Our aircraft diverted to New York on Saturday morning as a precaution, following a minor technical issue. We sent a relief aircraft out to New York on Saturday morning to get customers back to London Gatwick as quickly as possible.
"Customers were rebooked where possible and while there were limited hotel rooms available, our teams on the ground cared for customers in our first class lounge providing bedding, food and drinks to ensure they were comfortable during their stay."
Newshub.
