A RYANAIR flight was forced to return to the gate at Teesside Airport due to what bosses have described as an "operational issue" last night.
The flight to Alicante in Spain was left delayed after a passenger's bag was not loaded onto the aircraft before departure.
Official flight data shows the flight, which was due to depart at 6.20pm actually left at 8.30pm due to the issue.
It is understood that the Boeing 737 had taxied to the runway, before being told it must return to the gate to have the bag loaded.
The aircraft, which had already arrived around an hour late into Teesside Airport, was subsequently delayed by a further 44 minutes while the issue was resolved.
The flight had been originally due to land at Alicante at 10.15pm, but due to the original delay and incident surrounding the bag it did not land until midnight.
The handling agent, believed to be Swissport, has since apologised for the delay while it is understood the airport is working to prevent the situation happening again.
A spokesperson for Teesside International Airport said: “Our ground handling agent, experienced an operational issue which delayed the flight to Alicante on Monday.
"We have raised this issue with the agent and they are very sorry for the short delay that passengers experienced.”
It comes as the airport only a fortnight ago welcomed the return of Ryanair flights to Portugal for the first time in 13 years.
The first flight, destined for Faro in the Algarve, departed on Wednesday, June 16 after more than a decade away.
On the flight, Mike and Chris Spence from Heighington, in Darlington, who have a holiday home in the Algarve, described the return as "magical."
Mr Spence said: “We had booked tickets to fly out from Newcastle but when this route went on sale we cancelled those and rebooked to fly from Teesside.
"We couldn’t miss the opportunity to fly from our local airport and it’s just magical to be back again."
Keep up to date with all the latest news on our website, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
You can also follow our dedicated Teesside Facebook page for all the latest in the area by clicking here.
For all the top news updates from right across the region straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here.
Have you got a story for us? Contact our newsdesk on newsdesk@nne.co.uk or contact 01325 505054
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here