25 Drunken Irish Removed From Plane Causes Massive Flight Delay

A Carribean holiday flight from London to Costo Rica was delayed for more than three hours as 25 drunken Irish pasengers were kicked off the plane.

The Thomson Airways Dreamliner to Costa Rica yesterday was ready to take off when a large group of people are said to have become abusive to staff. Police boarded the flight as the plane remained at the departure gate after the pilot 'refused to fly' until the problem passengers - including a 14-year-old boy - were removed.

Holidaymaker Sally Ferguson, 50, from Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, described the scene on board as 'a fiasco'.

Speaking via text messages to a relative, the livery yard manager said: 'What a fiasco! We are on board and still on the ground. '25 people have just been taken off the plane because they are drunk and abusive. The police are here taking bags out of the hold. It's going to take forever.

'They are Irish. The captain said he has never see anything like it in 20 years.'

The problem passengers' luggage was taken from the hold while the police officers took the group back to the airport where they 'dispersed'.

'We operate a zero tolerance policy in relation to any disruptive behaviour and several customers were asked to leave the aircraft. We worked as quickly as possible to ensure the other customers could get away on their holiday.