Fred Olsen to fly home passengers after Black Watch fire
Fred Olsen has organised private charter flights to bring home almost 700 passengers today after a fire in the engine room on the Black Watch ship left them stranded in Madeira over the weekend.
The flights from Funchal will land in Stansted and Gatwick, from where the company will arrange onward transfers.
It said alternative arrangements were being made for those who couldn’t fly for medical reasons.
The fire started on Friday morning and was extinguished by crew without any injuries, but it damaged three out of seven auxiliary engines, affecting the lighting and communications.
The cruise line said all passengers on the 13-night cruise around Portugal, which departed from Dover on June 25, will receive a full refund plus ‘reasonable out of pocket expenses’.
In addition, Fred Olsen will offer a cruise voucher of up to 50% of the fare paid, to be used within its current cruise programme.
The next cruise on the Black Watch is due to depart from Tilbury on July 8.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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