DISABLED holidaymakers from Greenock say they were abandoned in Las Vegas by British Airways in the middle of the night - and only got home after the Tele stepped in.

The party of 13 - including 80-year-old amputee Frank O'Neill - say there was no-one to help them after they had to disembark their plane at 1am due to to a technical issue.

Frank, who requires the use of a wheelchair, told how he and his wife Ann, 79, who has mobility problems following a heart valve replacement were stranded with their fellow travellers, including children, at Vegas' Harry Reid International Airport.

Their friend, Raymond O'Donaghue, 62, said they were told 'lies' by BA, adding: "The Telegraph definitely got us home."

Frank, of Brisbane Street, said the airline was 'non-existent' for them in the airport.

He told the Tele: "We were abandoned while people scrambled to get other flights.

"It was the lack of customer care. Anne and I both need special assistance and have to travel business class."

 

Greenock Telegraph:

Raymond O'Donoghue, 62, told how BA only got in touch with him after he phoned the Tele from Vegas for help. 

Raymond said: "Someone from BA eventually called me and spoke to me and Frank's daughter, Debbie, to re-arrange flights - but only after I got in touch with you.

"Debbie contacted the Cruise Centre who organised accommodation for the night."

Raymond said they were assured that hotels had already been booked for passengers by the air crew.

He said: "This was a complete lie, there must have been 250/300 passengers and no-one had a hotel room booked for them.

"There was no-one from BA in the airport."

"Frank's daughter was trying to take blankets off the plane for the kids, so they were covered in the airport and she was told she wouldn't need them.

"That was a blatant lie."

The drama comes 11 months after the group experienced similar problems on their flight out from London Gatwick to Florida and were forced to sleep on the floor at Heathrow on the way back.

They received £10,000 compensation for their party of 22 at that time - after the Telegraph and Inverclyde MP Ronnie Cowan intervened.

READ MORE:Greenock holiday-makers win £10k compensation from British Airways

The episode put a dampener on what was a once-in-a-lifetime holiday for Frank and his family.

They had jetted out to San Francisco, before cruising to Mexico, finishing off with three days in Las Vegas.

Frank estimates that he had to spend around $1,400 on accommodation, food and taxis.

He said: "I will never travel with British Airways again. We don't even know how to claim it back."

Raymond said that re-booking online as BA had suggested just wasn't feasible for their party.

He said: "Due to the complexities of our party it wasn't practical to book online, we had people with disabilities, and children.

"A woman from BA called me and spoke to Debbie and I to go through all the different flight options."

The party eventually managed to get home on three separate flights.

A BA spokesperson said: "We are extremely sorry for the disruption to our customers’ journey home due to a technical issue with their aircraft.

"Our teams rebooked them on the next available flight.

"We always advise customers to ensure we have their contact details should we need to contact them."