- Male passenger had missed his flight from Manchester to Paphos
- But he managed to pass through gate and onto another flight to Cyprus
- Captain came into cabin to speak to man, and allowed him to fly onward
- Fellow passenger describes shock at how he was allowed on wrong flight
A passenger was able to board a plane from Manchester Airport with the wrong boarding pass - and the captain let him fly even when the error was discovered.
Despite the blunder, the young male passenger managed to board a flight to Paphos on Sunday afternoon.
Although he had a ticket to Paphos - the correct destination - his plane had in fact left earlier. But somehow he was able to get through the gate with his boarding pass and get on flight EZY1973, due to depart 25 minutes later.
A passenger boarded the wrong easyJet flight to Paphos - but was allowed to travel after speaking with the captain (file photo)
It is understood the pilot came down the plane to speak with the passenger before take-off, which was delayed by 30 minutes as a result.
Airport bosses insist that their security measures are robust and that the man was fully screened as normal - and easyJet says the passenger had made an inadvertent mistake.
Fellow passengers were shocked when they overhead the young man explain he was on the wrong flight.
One woman from Sale, who asked not to be named, said: 'We were informed by the captain that we were delayed due to a passenger being on the wrong plane.
'How on earth can this happen in these times of increased security? We were then informed by the captain that the passenger was remaining on the flight and the paperwork was being updated.'
When the mum and her two daughters raised their concerns with cabin crew, they were told he had passed through security checks. But the passenger added: 'If a passenger can get on a plane with an invalid boarding card, how easy would it be for someone with more sinister motives to board the plane?'
Allowing the man onto the flight despite him not having the correct boarding pass caused some distress to passengers who were worried about the 'security' issue
She said her daughter was an anxious flyer and it made her very uneasy throughout the journey.
Although she believed the error had been a genuine mistake, she added: 'That's not the issue - it's that someone can get on a flight they weren't booked on.
'It wasn't the guy's fault, it wasn't the crew's fault - it was whoever had let him on that plane.'
An easyJet spokesman said: 'Easyjet can confirm that a passenger who inadvertently boarded flight EZY1973 from Manchester to Paphos instead of boarding an earlier flight to Paphos was permitted to travel on the flight by the captain as the flight he was originally booked on had already left its stand.
'The safety and security of its passengers and crew is easyJet's highest priority. The passenger had undergone all of the security checks and so the captain was able to allow him to travel on the flight.'
A Manchester Airport spokesman said: 'All passengers in airside areas of the airport have passed through security and have been cleared for travel, whatever their end destination.
'Airlines and their handling agents carry out the boarding of aircraft once passengers have completed the security process and are ready for their flight.
'It is a matter for individual airlines to decide whether to allow passengers who have missed earlier flights to travel at a later time.'
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