Storm Filomena - Ryanair

The client

Headquartered in Dublin, Ryanair is one of the largest airlines in Europe, with over 2,500 daily flights across more than 225 destinations. The low-cost carrier transports 149m passenger each year.

The challenge

In January 2021, a rare Spanish snowstorm caused considerable disruption for travellers across Spain, Morocco, and the UK, as well as knock-on effects to travellers in other countries due to fly to Spain.

The heavy snow and wintry conditions forced Madrid Barajas airport to close, along with several roads, leaving thousands of people stranded across the globe because of cancelled flights. The snowfall was the heaviest Spain had seen in 50 years.

Ryanair required a transport solution to transfer diverted passengers to their original airport, as well as accommodation for passengers whose flights were delayed for a longer period of time or cancelled.

This was during the global COVID-19 pandemic; therefore, it was vital that the services provided conformed to each country’s guidelines to ensure the safety of passengers.

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The solution

CMAC have extensive experience in dealing with large-scale disruptions and rescues from airline collapses and natural disasters. This enabled their teams to rapidly execute a plan to address the situation, minimising further disruptions to stranded passengers.

Working round the clock, CMAC delivered solutions across multiple locations and provided emergency transport and accommodation to over 3,000 affected passengers.

Further challenges were encountered during CMACs rescue mission due to road closures affecting passengers that were being transferred from Madrid airport to the allocated hotels. However, CMAC has proven processes in place for disruption on this scale and worked tirelessly to ensure that every passenger was adequately cared for until we were able to help them reach their final destinations.

CMAC remains committed to continually reviewing each country’s guidelines to ensure the appropriate safety measures are in place across its supply chain. CMAC ensures an enhanced duty of care, providing peace of mind to clients that their customers and those in contact with them are protected.

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