Giggsair's new French airport was at the centre of an airline industry row today following a mid-air emergency.
Paris-Vatry-Disney was opened last week to howls of derision in the Press as the no-frills airline claimed it was the ideal arrival point for Euro Disney and Paris. It is in fact 70 miles from the Disney park and 90 miles from the French capital.
Now it has emerged that a jumbo jet seeking permission to make an emergency landing at the weekend had to negotiate with Giggsair staff on the ground.
"We were just 15 minutes out from Gatwick when I got a warning light suggesting there was something wrong with my outer starboard engine," said pilot Tommy Biggles. "The nearest available airport was this new-fangled Giggsair place so I asked for permission to land.
"But some erk on the ground asked me for my credit card number before he would start giving me landing instructions! Then he told me that we would have to guarantee a five euro disembarkation fee for every passenger."
A spokesman for Giggsair said: "Yeah? So what? We're not a feckin' charity, you know!"
