‘The Plane’s Gone’: Jet2 Passengers Left in Stairwell After Boarding Error at Manchester Airport

On Monday, 19 January 2026, a Jet2 flight — flight LS879 — departed Manchester Airport (MAN), Manchester, United Kingdom, for Alicante, Spain, without approximately 35 passengers who had already cleared security and had their boarding passes scanned.

The group was instructed to wait in a stairwell leading to a remote stand (often used when an aircraft cannot be reached by jet bridge), where they remained for up to 40 minutes without any formal communication — only to be told by an airport worker after the aircraft had departed that “the plane’s gone”, reported Mirror.

Jet2 flight LS879 Boarding Sequence and Stairwell Confusion

Passengers due to fly on Jet2 flight LS879 at around 07:00 GMT were checked through security and had their boarding passes scanned at the gate area. Instead of being directed onto either a jetbridge or a bus to reach the remote stand aircraft, a cluster of passengers were led down a stairwell adjacent to the gate.

They understood this to be a staging point for boarding but were not informed of the aircraft’s imminent departure nor given clear instructions on how to proceed.

Passengers waited for approximately 40 minutes in the stairwell — expecting staff to open the next set of doors or signal them to board the aircraft — yet no Jet2 employee returned. A witness described feeling “literally stuck like caged animals” at the bottom of the stairwell.

Eventually, an airport worker came over and reportedly said, “the plane’s gone” — confirming that the flight had departed without the group on board.

Jet2 later stated the event was caused by an “error on the stairwell directions” and has launched an urgent investigation, while offering the affected passengers alternative flights and modest vouchers.

Eyewitness accounts

Passengers, including a man named Matt from Denton, said they became increasingly confused after being directed toward the gate but were unable to access the aircraft. According to Matt, passengers waited for around 30 minutes expecting the doors to open or a bus to take them to the aircraft, but received no clear explanation from airline staff.

Matt said the lack of communication was particularly distressing for his son, who has anxiety. The situation became even more confusing when a Jet2 employee eventually informed the waiting passengers that the aircraft had already departed, leaving them stranded at the airport.

Jet2 acknowledged that some passengers booked on flight LS879 from Manchester to Alicante were unable to board the scheduled service. The airline said it was urgently investigating the incident with Manchester Airport and had arranged alternative flights to Alicante for the affected customers later the same day.

All in All

Matt was indignant with the carrier. He was shocked to learn that no formal headcount was carried out once boarding began, arguing that the aircraft appeared to depart with dozens of empty seats and questioning why this was not flagged by the flight crew.

He added that passengers were given £10 vouchers while awaiting rebooking, with several elderly travelers and his anxiety-prone son left visibly distressed. Matt attributed the incident to a missing barrier that should have directed passengers onto the aircraft, calling the breakdown in basic boarding control bewildering and unprecedented.