The Irish low-cost airline posted a tongue-in-cheek video showing what they really think of passengers who miss flights, and people have agreed with them
Missing your flight can be an enormously frustrating experience, particularly if the delay is completely beyond your control. You can be held up if there’s a problem at security, if the boarding gate changes at short notice and you have to traverse the entire airport to reach it, and even if your taxi journey to the airport is delayed.
However, sometimes the responsibility lies entirely with the passenger. It’s widely understood that you should arrive at the airport with sufficient time to account for these potential hold-ups, and opting to turn up as late as possible or spending so long in duty-free that you completely miss boarding is not the airline’s responsibility.
And in a tongue-in-cheek clip, Ryanair have been brutally candid about what they genuinely think of passengers like this. The Irish budget carrier shared a clip on Facebook in which they jokingly demonstrated what passengers who miss their flights expect the aircraft to do in order to accommodate them.
The footage showed a man turning up at the airport just as his aircraft departed from the runway. He screamed in frustration and ran out onto the tarmac, at which point the aircraft circled back and used some sort of sci-fi film beam to transport the man onto the plane whilst it was still airborne.
Ryanair commented: “What passengers that miss their flight expect us to do.”
Ryanair’s candid video elicited a wave of amusement from commenters, with many responding with laughing emojis. Some expressed bewilderment at how frequently people lose track of time in airports, especially when they ignore boarding announcements and then become frustrated when the plane departs without them.
One individual commented: “Accurate!” Another chimed in: “I would work for free in this marketing team.”
A third shared: “I watched four people chatting for like two hours in front of me whilst their gate was open and they waited until everyone boarded the flight, and then went to the gate after it was closed and started shouting at the employees. The whole time they were sitting and chatting, 10 steps, literally, from the gate!”
What to do if you miss your flight
If you happen to miss your flight, the first course of action is to contact your airline via telephone as soon as you realise you’re going to be late. This could be due to traffic en-route to the airport, other travel disruptions, or lengthy queues at security once you’re inside the airport.
According to Which?, doing so can increase your chances of being rebooked onto another flight at no extra cost, or if a fee is required, it may be less than the price of purchasing a new flight. Some airlines offer a “rescue fare” or a “rescue fee” for missed flights, but the conditions for this will vary depending on the airline you’re flying with.
You can also face a “no-show fee” from certain airlines if you fail to turn up at the airport at all, so if you’re running behind schedule, you should still attempt to reach the airport, even if you don’t board the plane.
Certain travel insurance policies may also provide cover if you miss your flight, but this will depend on your policy, and many of them don’t provide cover if it’s caused by long queues at the airport.
The most effective way to minimise the risk of missing your flight is to allow plenty of time to travel to the airport and get through security, accounting for any potential delays.
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