Did airline fail in its duty of care?

Q During the recent drone disruption at Gatwick airport my 80-year-old father was due to land there and my husband and I were there to pick him up. I tracked his flight flying in circles around Oxford before it eventually diverted to Manchester. They were held on the aircraft for two hours and then told that transport had been arranged to get them to Gatwick.

By now it was 1.30 in the morning. Then dad texted to say no transport was available and they had all been left at Manchester airport terminal 2. We decided to drive from Gatwick to Manchester through the night to pick him up. When we arrived my dad was sat cold and shattered. I have contacted the customer care and they just seem to be passing the buck. Do they have a duty of care?

Name withheld

A Your father was one of several thousand passengers caught up on Wednesday 19 December, the first evening of disruption at Gatwick airport due to unauthorised drone activity. After the busiest runway in the world was closed as a safety precaution, aircraft began quickly to divert to a wide range of airports, though few as far as Manchester.

When planes divert, European air passengers’ rights rules oblige the airline to arrange onward transport and to provide care – with meals and accommodation if necessary – while travellers are waiting. The law also states: “Operating air carriers should meet the special needs of persons with reduced mobility.” This may or may not describe your father, but to abandon passengers without transport or hotel rooms is simply not acceptable.

If you feel the airline is not responding appropriately, you can opt for either or both of two courses of action are open to you. First, you can report the airline’s failure to deliver a duty of care to your father (and presumably other passengers) to the Civil Aviation Authority. This will help the CAA build up a picture of how well or badly airlines response to crises. Next, to avoid you being out-of-pocket for your mercy mission, you can send a bill for the fuel used, because the airline was obliged to get your father to his destination airport and failed to do so.

Every day our travel correspondent Simon Calder tackles a reader’s question. Just email yours to s@hols.tv or tweet @simoncalder