EasyJet passengers slept on floor of ‘rodent-ridden’ Schiphol airport after cancellations

The airport’s CEO announced his resignation this week, saying: ‘I’ve done my very best’

Planes at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

An easyJet passenger says he and dozens of others were forced to spend a night in Amsterdam’s “rodent-ridden” airport after several flights were cancelled at the last minute on Monday.

One member of the group, who were due to fly with easyJet, told the Daily Star they had tried to sleep in the airport while “girls screamed all night” and one woman was “sick with anxiety” at the sight of the mice.

He said that they had been unable to contact easyJet to help arrange accommodation, and instead attempted to sleep on the floor, chairs, or benches while mice ran around looking for scraps of food.

“There was no phone line support and their website was down,” he said.

The man, who wished to remain anonymous, filmed the “grim reality” of waiting for his next flight out of the Netherlands.

His cancelled flight was EZY1836. It was set to depart for Manchester at 10.40pm (on 12 September) from Schiphol – an airport that has been disrupted by severe staff shortages for months.

Screen at Schiphol warning of long queues and staff shortages, as passengers wait, in June 2022 (Peter Dejong/AP)

His footage shows a mouse looking for crumbs on the counter of an airport restaurant that had shut for the day.

The mouse searched near the fridge and cupboards – while some passengers sat or lay on rows of chairs nearby.

He said that the stranded passengers were very disturbed by the constant sightings of mice darting around the airport.

“I slept in the airport with girls screaming all night at rodents and one lady was sick with anxiety. I was awake and not bathed for 28 hours,” he told the Star, adding: “I didn’t go many minutes without seeing one.”

Another passenger, Glenn Matchett, also booked to fly back to the UK with easyJet, posted a photo of mice scurrying around Schiphol airport.

He said: “Queued at Schiphol for 4 hours yesterday. easyJet cancelled our flight just as we reached security. (Cheers!) Now rebooked on BA this morning for a small fortune.

“Spent last night on a bench in the terminal infested with mice.”

EasyJet has said it was one of a number of airlines told by Schiphol airport authorities to cancel flights this week because of “extensive security delays”.

The Dutch airport has been so beset with operational problems this year that its CEO Dick Benschop resigned over this summer’s flight chaos.

He said in a statement: “I’ve done my very best, but we’re not there yet. I do hope it gets better soon.”

A spokesperson for easyJet said: “Due to extensive security delays at Amsterdam airport on Monday and following a request to all airlines from the airport authority, easyJet was unfortunately required to cancel some flights to and from Amsterdam including flight EZY1836 to Manchester.

“We did all possible to minimise the impact of the airport disruption, notifying customers in advance and before the recommended airport arrival time, and provided options to rebook for free or receive a refund along with hotel accommodation and meals where required.

“While we have no record of issues with our website at this time and hotel rooms were available to accommodate all customers, and although the cancellation was outside of our control, we apologise for the inconvenience caused by the airport disruption.

“We are looking into the claims of conditions in the terminal with Amsterdam airport, as this is well below the standards we expect for our customers.”

A spokesperson for Schiphol confirmed that the airport had asked several airlines to cancel flights between 4pm and 11pm on Monday, adding: “Such a large building as our terminal is never completely 100 per cent pest free.”