Flybe: Ex-staff turned away from Exeter Chiefs rugby game

Tanya Lloyd used to work at Flybe before it went into administration on Wednesday

Former Flybe staff who won tickets to a Premiership rugby game said they were turned away at the gates.

Tanya Lloyd said she was refused entry to the Exeter Chiefs game against Bath at the end of possibly "one of the worst weeks of my career".

She arrived at Sandy Park stadium on Saturday with tickets to be told they had "been cancelled".

Exeter Chiefs said it did not want to comment but confirmed Flybe had sponsored the club since 2010.

Flybe, which was based in Exeter, went into administration on Wednesday.

Flybe started sponsoring Exeter Chiefs in 2010

Mrs Lloyd, who worked for Flybe for 18 years, said she was told a management decision had been made at Exeter Chiefs to cancel the tickets, due to the airline's collapse.

She said she was "trying to hold back tears" as along with her husband she "then had to walk back past the thousands of fans to my car in an almost walk of shame".

The former health and safety manager said employees had always been proud of their relationship with Chiefs which included "chartering flights for them to being at the kit launch day".

"I was really looking forward to going to the game, I've been a fan for years and it would have been a welcome break from the last two days," she said.

Mrs Lloyd said she had paid for parking, driven from Tiverton and arranged childcare.

"I'd just like the chiefs to admit what they did wrong and make an apology," she said.

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Another former Flybe employee, Bethany, said being turned away at the game was a "kick in the teeth" when she was already feeling down.

After the airlines collapse, it was "just what we needed to try and enjoy ourselves for the day", she said.

The former operations department employee said she had previously dealt with flights for Exeter Chiefs.

The former Flybe staff said they had won the tickets through the airline before it collapsed