'I flew to Gibraltar instead of Belfast by mistake'

Gemma Cargin has revealed her shock at travelling on a flight to Gibraltar, despite her intention to board a plane bound for Belfast

EasyJet is investigating after a woman who thought she was travelling to Belfast ended up in Gibraltar after boarding the wrong flight.

Gemma Cargin, 25, is originally from Banbridge, County Down, but works as a teacher in Manchester.

A frequent flyer, she often travels back and forward to visit family.

She arrived at Manchester Airport on Sunday morning for her flight, and proceeded to what she thought was the correct gate.

"The TV screen that told us the flight wasn't on at the gate, so I never had a notion I could be getting on to the wrong flight," she said.

Even though Ms Cargin's boarding pass was scanned, no-one realised she was getting on the wrong plane.

With what she thought was a 40-minute flight ahead of her, she had a nap.

She said: "I woke up from my nap and I looked at the time, and I just asked: 'When are we landing, are we landing soon?'

"They told me we were landing in an hour and fifteen minutes - and I said: 'Is this flight not going to Belfast?'

"They told me it was going to Gibraltar. I said: 'Guys, I'm on the wrong flight'.

"I was shocked, I was worried, I was wondering how I was going to get home, was I going to be left in Gibraltar?

"Also, I was thinking about my parents because I knew they were picking me up and that they had no idea where I was."

Ms Cargin ended up more than 1,000 miles away from her intended destination

Meanwhile in Belfast, Ms Cargin's mother could not find her at the airport and was beginning to worry.

Ms Cargin said: "There was a lot of confusion. Mum was told I hadn't made it on to the Belfast flight and she said her stomach just flipped, because I had texted from the plane to say I was on my way.

"They didn't know what had happened to me."

She said her parents were then wrongly informed she was on her way to the Spanish city of Alicante.

"They were making arrangements to bring me back from Alicante and it wasn't until I landed in Gibraltar and got phone signal that I was able to let them know where I actually was.

"They were shocked."

Ms Cargin managed to take a selfie from Gibraltar

The aircraft's crew allowed Ms Cargin to take some air before she headed back to Manchester on the same plane.

At the top of the aircraft's steps, she took a selfie with the Rock of Gibraltar in the background.

She said: "I'd never been before, so now I can tick it off the list.

"I have proof, the selfie was a souvenir."

During her unexpected day trip, Ms Cargin had flown 1,198 miles from Manchester to Gibraltar and then the same distance back again.

After a four-hour delay, she then travelled 168 miles from Manchester to Belfast.

What should have taken less than an hour took 12 hours, but after a detour of 2,396 miles - Ms Cargin finally made it home, much to the relief of her parents.

Investigation

Ms Cargin was told she did not have to quarantine because she had not left the vicinity of the plane, and had a negative Covid test to fly in the first place.

In a statement, EasyJet said: "We are investigating with the airport and our ground handling partner at Manchester how Ms Cargin was able travel on the wrong flight.

"As soon as the mistake was realised, it was arranged for them to fly back to Manchester and on to Belfast, their original intended destination.

"Ms Cargin was looked after by our team throughout and provided with refreshments.

"We would like to sincerely apologise for any inconvenience caused."

With another flight to get in a few days, does she have any concerns?

She said: "I'm just going to definitely check that I'm on the right flight and not fall asleep before the plane takes off."