A mum visiting her daughter in Aberdeen has been without luggage, and her 30th birthday presents, for six days now.
The last few months have been hard for the Murdoch family, but the thought of a holiday in Greece to celebrate Holly’s 30th birthday kept them pushing on.
The 29-year-old has Crohn’s disease, which has caused her to be “very poorly”, losing a lot of weight while also using walking sticks as she suffers from arthritis in her joints.
Mum Elena was diagnosed with a brain tumour a few years ago, and though doctors believe it is benign, a recent scare found it has grown slightly.
They, along with Holly’s dad Graham, were more than ready to enjoy some much-needed relaxation.
But when Elena arrived in Aberdeen on Saturday without her luggage, they were forced to cancel the dream holiday.
No luggage in Aberdeen
Elena lives and works in Abu Dhabi and is visiting Holly is Aberdeen for the first time since the start of the pandemic.
She flew from Abu Dhabi to Manchester with her husband. There they picked up her bags then checked them in again for their Loganair flight to Aberdeen.
The 54-year-old explained the flight was delayed in leaving because of issues with loading baggage.
“When we were on the plane the captain told us the flight was delayed because the luggage was still being loaded,” she said.
“Then we took off and he said all the luggage was on board, but when we got to Aberdeen we were standing at the carousel and maybe half a dozen bags came off – then it stopped.”
Elena’s luggage contained most of her everyday essentials, as well as Holly’s birthday gifts, because she is visiting for six weeks.
They made the decision to cancel the holiday to Greece because Elena would have had to spend a lot of money on new clothes, shoes and toiletries to take with her.
She said: “Holly has been so poorly and I feel bad I can’t take her anywhere. I’m going to take her for a spa day but it’s not the same as going away somewhere nice, I just can’t afford it now.”
‘I’ve been told so many different things’
Elena has tried getting in touch with Loganair on social media, over the phone and by email, but all they have been able to tell her is that her luggage is with a courier and it will be driven up to Aberdeen “as soon as possible”.
She said: “I’ve been told so many different things that I don’t believe a word they’re saying.”
Loganair offered her £25 per day for three days in light of her luggage not arriving in Aberdeen, but this did not stretch far and Elena is reluctant to repurchase everything.
“I don’t want to go and spend all that money because I won’t get it back again, what if my bag turns up tomorrow?” she said.
Loganair response
This is not the first time a Loganair passenger has arrived at their destination without their luggage.
Issues with baggage and delays are also affecting airlines and airports across the UK.
In response to the Murdoch family’s story, a Loganair spokeswoman said: “We are working very closely with our baggage handling partners in each of the airports to which we operate and, while lost or delayed luggage is still uncommon, we are doing our utmost to recover items.
“We sincerely apologise to our customers who are waiting for delayed luggage and would ask them to bear with us as we work to recover them.”
Conversation