Passengers on a busy Ryanair flight were held on board for over an hour after they landed in Dublin over fears a young girl had been struck down with a contagious disease, the Belfast Telegraph reported. The cabin crew refused to let passengers off the plane over fears the child could have spread the disease to others on board. The Ryanair flight originated from Luqa Airport in Malta.
The tourists had to remain on board because no 'fit to travel' medical documentation was available for a young girl with chickenpox.
Adding to the stress of the prolonged wait, cabin crew refused to let an airport-based HSE doctor examine the young girl preferring to wait to contact the family's own GP.
A spokesperson for Ryanair has confirmed that the incident involved a young child who was returning from a family holiday and had contracted chickenpox, the newspaper further reported. "The child aboard the flight was suspected of having chicken-pox and the delay period was to allow staff to verify with a doctor whether the child had passed the infection period," said the Ryanair spokesperson.
