A PERSHORE man's Thai wife was ordered off a plane to Ireland just before it started to taxi along the runway.

Rod and Gem Haines were taking a belated honeymoon after they got married in Thailand two years ago.

Everything went well after they booked their tickets online, went through customs and boarded the plane.

But then, Mr Haines, 44, of Rod's Taxis, said: "We were sitting on the plane at Birmingham airport ready to take off when a woman from Ryanair suddenly appeared and said to my wife: Sorry you can't go'. The experience was absolutely terrible - we felt like criminals."

He said they got off the plane and eventually found out Mrs Haines needed a special visa for southern Ireland as she had a Thai passport. She is in England under a settlement visa.

He added: "I think we were treated very shabbily by Ryanair, which didn't allow us to change the flight. We didn't know we needed to get another visa and I lost about £450 in flights and hotel bookings."

Mr Haines met his 30-year-old wife, who works at Pershore Hospital, at a friend's wedding while she was in the country on a visit.

Together, they have three children by previous marriages. The Journal was unable to contact Ryanair before going to press.

Pershore Travel Agent Ruth Brunger, from Wanderers' World, said: "The drawback with on-line booking is that there is no customer service.

"Travel agents always make sure customers check their visa requirements before they book holidays."