Raw Deal: Michelle returns from her fairytale of New York and wakes up to a nightmare in Dublin

IF you can’t spend St Patrick’s Day in Ireland, there’s one other place that fits the bill for an Irish-themed knees-up – the Big Apple.

That’s what Michelle Melville, 29, from Helensburgh, discovered when she went on a trip to New York with partner Leo last month.

It was legal worker Michelle’s first time in the US and she loved every minute of her trip to the city that never sleeps.

However, nothing quite prepares you for the throng of people who pack the thoroughfares of the Big Apple for the St Patrick’s Day Parade.

It was an exhausting experience but, as it was the last day of their trip, the pair knew within hours they would be heading for home comforts…or so they hoped.

Instead, the trip was far from over.

On the way home, the couple’s Aer Lingus flight touched down in Dublin at 8am and they were due to catch a connecting flight to Glasgow two hours later.

However, they suspected all wasn’t going to go quite to plan when they looked out the window on the descent to the Irish capital and saw a fresh smattering of snow on the runways.

As feared, their connecting flight was delayed – albeit by just 45 minutes at first. However, once on board they realised they weren’t taking off any time soon.

Cabin crew told passengers the aircraft couldn’t depart until it had been defrosted. And that could take “a while”.

In all, they were on the tarmac for four hours before the pilot took them back to the terminal, admitting defeat.

In the time spent on the aircraft, Michelle said they were offered just a glass of water to keep them going.

Food and beverages were available to buy – but at prices she found hard to stomach.

On returning to the terminal, Michelle and Leo, a painter and decorator, found a chaotic scene with thousands of passengers in the same position due to the bad weather.

The couple said staff struggled to find their luggage. By 5.30pm, they were told they’d be able to get on a flight home from Dublin – but probably not for at least two days.

Worse, they would have to join the throng of other passengers fighting for accommodation until then.

Both Michelle and Leo had had enough so made the brave decision to leave Dublin and instead travel to Belfast to see if they could arrange a flight home from there.

Michelle said amid the chaos airport staff in Dublin were unable to assist with their 100-mile trip north.

The move, however, paid off. Within hours the pair were on a flight from Belfast to Glasgow, albeit dog-tired and significantly out of pocket.

In all, Michelle says they spent an extra £454 on the Belfast detour, which included bus and taxi fares as well as food and two new plane tickets.

On returning home, Michelle felt her pleas for reimbursement fell on deaf ears.

She turned to Raw Deal for help. And when we contacted Aer Lingus on her behalf, they soon sprang into action and quickly agreed to refund her the costs – with a further €500 as compensation.

The money was refunded by Stobart Air, a regional partner of the Irish airline and which operated the return Glasgow to Dublin leg of the trip.

Last night, an ecstatic Michelle said: “I was getting nowhere until Raw Deal got involved – thanks for all your help!”