A couple said they were appalled when their flight was delayed by more than seven hours because cockroaches were found in their plane. Michelle and David Coates had been on holiday in Tenerife with friends and were hit with the lengthy delay on their way back to Gatwick. Passengers were later told that the 7.
5-hour hold-up was due to cockroaches being found on the plane – but holiday company Tui is refusing to pay any compensation for the delay. A spokeswoman for the airline apologised for the delay but said it was not obliged to pay because the circumstances were exceptional. Michelle, 57, said: “The pilot said before we took off that the delay was because they had discovered cockroaches on the plane.
Read More: Armed police meet Gatwick Tui flight after 'tequila terror' incident “When they made the announcement, I thought: ‘oh my god, how clean are these planes?’. To say that it is exceptional circumstances is ridiculous. They can’t continue to treat customers in this way, it’s appalling.
” David and Michelle Coates, from Steyning, were stranded for 7.5 hours (Image: Michelle Coates) Michelle and David, 62, from Steyning, had been in Tenerife with friends Glen and Julie Mussell from Lancing. They were due to fly back from Gatwick on September 15.
They were initially told that their plane would only be briefly delayed. Then they found out that their flight, scheduled for just after midday, would actually take off after 7pm. The couples were ferried to a nearby.