Aer Lingus row: Family ‘devastated’ after holiday cancelled

A father has spoken of his children’s disappointment after their ‘holiday of a lifetime’ to Disney World was canceled due to an Aer Lingus pay dispute.

Aer Lingus has canceled at least 220 flights due to a planned pilot strike.

An indefinite strike is due to begin on Wednesday, with an eight-hour strike planned for Saturday.

The airline and the Irish Air Line Pilots’ Association (IALPA) will later attend separate meetings at an employment tribunal to discuss the matter.

Andrew McKee, from Bangor, County Down, was among a group of nine who were due to travel to Orlando, Florida, on Wednesday but found out on Friday that the flights had been cancelled.

“I have a five-year-old girl and an eight-year-old boy and they were devastated whenever I told them,” Mr McKee said.

Mr McKee’s daughter Lucy cried when he told her the news.

“It’s something you really build up to,” he said.

“They had a little countdown that we did, they said how much sleep we had before we left, and my son, he’s a little bit older, so he kind of gets it, but he’s still a kid at the same time. “

His youngest was especially disappointed to miss out on a trip to Disneyland.

“Lucy was really excited to see Cinderella and Snow White and all the princesses.

“It’s magical and suddenly the rug has been swept out from under us.”

Aer Lingus offered Mr McKee the option to change flights or ask for a refund, but “the problem is it’s just an element of the flight”, Mr McKee said.

“There’s park tickets, there’s accommodation, there’s car rental, you know everything else,” he added.

Mr McKee, his wife, two children, mother’s family and sister were due to fly from Dublin.

Tánaiste (Deputy Prime Minister) Micheál Martin said that both sides of the dispute are ignoring the public.

“They planned it, they saved for it – it’s shocking that they’re ignoring them and deliberately, if you like, putting this battle between Aer Lingus management and the unions to one side,” Martin said. he said.

The airline said it had issued a new invitation to IALPA for direct talks, but the union said it would not re-enter the talks, which came with assumptions about flexibility and productivity.

Mr McKee said he supported the striking pilots despite his plight.

“I think pilots have a very difficult job in that they deserve to be paid well … but it’s difficult at the same time.”

“The only good thing is that we had it booked as a package so I think our travel agent will take care of us.

Mr McKee and his family are now thinking about planning a holiday for next year.

The airline said passengers with flights booked between June 26 and July 2 have a number of options.

Everyone should be contacted via email or SMS or through a travel agent.

For customers who have booked directly with Aer Lingus, there is an option to change flights online. The company said it will waive the fare difference and any change fee if the booking is changed to a later date.

There is also the option to claim a full refund or a cashback voucher redeemable within five years.

Aer Lingus said passengers who booked through a travel agent or third party must contact those companies directly.

“Unfortunately, Aer Lingus is unable to directly assist in these cases,” Aer Lingus says on its website.