Mum left stunned by ‘best flight ever’ with Ryanair – even getting free snacks and cockpit tour
WHILE passengers often moan about Ryanair, one mum has praised the budget airline.
Mum-of-two Verity Billington recently flew from London Stansted to Edinburgh with her children Kaiden, 13, and Kaylah, 11.
Verity, who was travelling with budget airline Ryanair, praised her experience in a recent post on Facebook.
While she noted that the airline has a “bad reputation”, Verity described her recent trip as a “wonderful experience”.
During her flight, her children were given free snacks and invited into the cockpit after the plane touched down.
In a post on Family Lockdown Tips and Ideas, Verity shared details about her positive Ryanair flight.
She wrote: “My 11-year-old daughter was so afraid of flying, as we boarded, she sat in her seat with her head in her arms about to burst into tears.
“But an amazing air stewardess named Rachael knelt down beside her, while people were boarding, and reassured my daughter.
“She told [my daughter] that flying on a plane was just like being in jelly. She told her to imagine flying through jelly, and reassured her absolutely nothing would happen.”
Shortly after take off, the flight attendant reappeared and gave Kaylah a handwritten note signed by cabin crew members.
There were also bars of chocolate tucked inside the piece of paper.
The note read: “We are so proud of you. Thank you for trusting us to fly you home! Or on holiday!! Just remember, it’s like being in jelly!! From Rachael, Julius, Ethan, and Antonio.”
When the family touched down in Edinburgh at 10pm, they were some of the last passengers to leave the plane.
But before they left the aircraft, they were treated to another surprise.
In the post, Verity added: “After being one of the last ones off the plane, my 13-year-old son, who is so eager to be a pilot, was invited to sit in the cockpit.”
Kaiden, who is in the Air Cadets, had a chat with the pilot who gave the teenager some advice on how to become a pilot.
Verity added: “He was also given the responsibility of turning all the lights off in the cockpit for the outside lights of the plane.
“I’ve never seen my son happier. He was lost for words, with the biggest smile on his face, and hasn’t stopped talking about it since.”
When the family made their way back to England, Kaylah kept the note in her pocket to ease her fears of flying.
She finished by saying: “My son is over the moon with a picture that will he always remember as his first time in a real cockpit accompanied by a real pilot and captain.”
Verity flies frequently between London and Edinburgh to visit her fiancé and three stepchildren.
The mum, who works for the Florida-based business Chargebacks911 also routinely travels for work.
Despite her frequent flights, she described her recent Ryanair flight as the “best experience”.
Verity, 33, told Sun Online Travel: “Acts of kindness can make a great impact, not just in the world around us, but on a child’s future.”
Earlier this week, other Ryanair passengers voiced their anger at the airline after they were forced to pay for a hidden fee.
Until recently, the airline provided people with their digital boarding passes for free via their app, whether they had paid for specific seats or not.
But it appears that has changed and passengers now have to pay between £7 and £21 for a randomly allocated seat, which will then allow them to have their pass on their phone before travelling to the airport.
Those who don’t pay will have to wait in line to get their boarding pass at the check-in desks instead.
It is unclear when the charge was first introduced, but passengers have taken to X, formerly Twitter, over the last few days to complain.
Meanwhile, these are the airlines with the worst hidden fees.
And Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has defended his airline’s add-on fees, claiming they’re good for passengers.