HUNDREDS of holidaymakers from our region have been given the chance to return home thanks to a budget airline.

Jet2 arranged 13 flights out of Leeds-Bradford Airport to destinations including Palma, Malaga, Faro, Alicante and Lanzarote after flight restrictions in UK airspace were lifted.

The Press understands the planes would be leaving the UK containing only flight crew and staff members, who would help bring home some of the thousands of passengers still stranded overseas due to the Icelandic volcanic ash crisis.

Ian Doubtfire, managing director of Jet2, said the safety of its passengers was the company’s priority.

He said: “We urge passengers to go on to the Jet2.com website and start booking their flights as soon as possible. Our priority is to bring people home as quickly and safely as possible.

“The team here at Jet2 are working around the clock to ensure that our valued passengers receive the excellent service they have come to expect from the North’s favourite airline.”

A statement on Jet2’s website said all flights would operate as scheduled from today. Within hours of the flights being advertised, three flights to Leeds- Bradford from Tenerife Lanzarote and Alicante had sold out.

The statement also said passengers with an existing booking on a Jet2 flight who pay for a replacement flight will be refunded the cost of the new booking.

The head of the Civil Aviation Authority said he was sure his actions would be fully supported if any inquiry was held into the ash cloud crisis. CAA chief executive Andrew Haines also denied that his organisation had been under Government pressure to get UK airspace fully open again.

He said that he “made no apology” for the fact that the flight ban had been imposed for so long, stressing that safety had to be the priority.

It was the CAA that introduced new guidelines which allowed a lifting on Tuesday night of the days-long restrictions on most UK flights.

Mr Haines said: “A genuine, independent inquiry would back our position. Our position was a robust and safe one.”

“We have developed new international guidance which has been applied across Europe.”


St Peter’s students return from Morocco

PUPILS and staff from a York school arrived back home after an epic 1,600 mile journey from Morocco.

About 25 students and four staff members from St Peter’s School spent three nights on ferries and coaches after their flight back from a trip to Morocco was cancelled.

Jon Whitehouse, head of design and technology, who led the group, said: “It’s been quite an adventure with the pupils making it as easy as it could be with some great team spirit. At every point we realised how lucky we were in at least knowing we could get home, even if it took some time.”

The group left Marrakesh for Algiers by bus on Sunday. From there they caught a ferry to southern Spain, drove overnight to Madrid, then through France to Calais, where they caught a ferry.

• The Lord Mayor of York, Coun John Galvin, who has been stranded in China on a trip funded by partner organisations across the city, has been told he will be unable to get a flight back to the UK until May 8. Deputy Lord Mayor Brian Watson is standing in for him.

• The owners of Masons Bistro in Fossgate, York, also seemed to have fallen victim to the chaos. A sign was spotted in their window – suggesting their planned holiday in Spain had been cancelled.


3-week wait for Dunnington cricketers

MEMBERS of a York cricket club stranded in the Caribbean may have to wait three weeks to fly back to the UK.

More than 60 members of Dunnington Cricket Club were on a tour of the Caribbean island of St Kitts and were due to travel back last Sunday.

The flight restrictions mean the group is now killing time in their hotels until alternative travel arrangements can be made. Andy Chipps said they were in good spirits, but unhappy about the lack of support from their tour operator.

He said: “British Airways has revealed that they don’t intend to send any extra planes and that we have to book on to scheduled flights.

“However, there are only two flights per week to St Kitts and all flights are fully booked until May 14. We have met with the British Consul and a representative from the High Commissioner in Barbados, but they don’t appear to be able to do much for us.” Andy also said members of the group were changing hotel rooms daily, and one needed medicine which is difficult to find on the island.

He said: “A trip to the pharmacist was carried out today for those who are running out of prescription drugs. We are reviewing options that will allow us to finance this.

“The tour party is now split between two hotels, and more people had to change rooms today. This is happening on a daily basis and there will be problems when spectators start to arrive for the Women’s World Cup Twenty20 at the end of the month.”

The group has created a priority list should seats on scheduled flights become available before May14, meaning those with medical issues will be first to return, followed by students sitting exams and self-employed members. Teachers in the party were able to hold a lesson for the primary school children on Wednesday, after setting up a temporary classroom in a closed bar on the beach. The group is made up of about 100 people, half from Dunnington Cricket Club and half from the Caribbean Cricket Club in Leeds.