BRADFORD holidaymakers caught up in the chaos surrounding the collapse of Monarch Airlines spoke tonight of their “shock and frustration”at the unfolding situation.

Hundreds of passengers hoping to travel to destinations including Turkey and Naples were turned away from Leeds Bradford Airport this morning as an airport spokesman described the situation as a “stressful time.”

Three quarters of a million people hold future bookings with the travel firm, which went into administration in the early hours of today, cancelling the flights and holidays of 860,000 people.

Some 110,000 customers overseas are being flown home in what the Government is calling the UK’s biggest peacetime repatriation.

Among the weary but relieved passengers touching down at the Yeadon airport on Monday were a couple from Baildon Green, who had been forced to find an alternative flight back from their two-week holiday in Oludeniz, south west Turkey.

Martin Clapham, 49, and partner Carrie-Ann Park, 48, had been due to fly back to Leeds Bradford with Monarch.

Mr Clapham said he had been in touch with his parents, Irene and Stuart Clapham, also of Baildon, who organised alternative flights for them on Turkish firm Freebird Airlines and kept them updated with developments.

Mr Clapham said: “I’m frustrated.

“There was no information from Monarch, nothing at all. I thought there would be some representation from Monarch.

“We were trying to get information from Turkey. We were due to come back anyway.

“It’s sad what has happened for the general public.

“It’s been a great holiday until the last 24 hours. People on Sunday were talking about what was happening with Monarch around the hotel pool and we looked it up on Facebook.

“The resort in Turkey are worried no-one from the UK will go there after this.”

A media scrum greeted passengers, including the Baildon couple, for the flight home from Dalaman Mugla, in Turkey, at 4.05pm. Another repatriation flight for Monarch customers stranded in Naples, Italy, had been due to arrive at 2.25pm, but touched down more than two hours late.

Aviation Minister Lord Martin Callanan was at Leeds Bradford Airport to speak to passengers as they came off the Dalaman Mugla flight. He said 550 people on repatriation flights were due to arrive at LBA yesterday. Lord Callanan said: “The people that I spoke to were very positive. We expected there to be teething problems with this, but the people I spoke to said it went well. The repatriation will take two weeks.”

Monarch’s board called in administrators KPMG early today. Administrator Blair Nimmo said the company, which employs around 2,100 people, had struggled with mounting costs and competitive market conditions.

The Civil Aviation Authority chartered four planes to bring holidaymakers home to Leeds Bradford from Naples, Dalaman, Menorca and Barcelona after their flights were cancelled.

Monarch had ten routes from Leeds Bradford across Europe, including several in Spain as well as Turkey, Italy, Cyprus and Portugal.

One family due to fly from Leeds Bradford to Cyrpus tomorrow have been left in limbo by the news.

Barry and Deborah Gill were due to fly out for Mr Gill’s daughter’s wedding, but he now faces the possibility he may not be able to walk his daughter down the aisle on Friday, unless they can find £800 for new flights.

Mr Gill’s stepdaughter, Joanne Richardson, said: “My stepsister and I are already out in Cyprus but Mum and Dad, with working during the week, had been planning to come Wednesday through to Saturday.

“I’m not sure whether they’re going to be able to get out as it’s a lot of money to find in the space of a day.

“It was the news nobody wanted.”

Robert Drummond, regional newspaper sales manager at the Telegraph & Argus, has been forced to pay an extra £150 for a new flight home from Majorca next weekend.

He said: “My brother, son, a friend and I were due to go out to take part in a ten kilometre race. I am flying out on Ryanair and was due to come back on a Monarch flight which cost £41, but have now had to book another flight for £151 with Ryanair.

“Nothing surprises me with cheap flights, I know a 10k isn’t the most important thing but it was something we are all looking forward to.”

Alan Birkinshaw, sports reporter at the T&A, was also due to fly with Monarch on Saturday to Faro in Portugal, but his holiday is now in jeopardy.

Mr Birkinshaw and his wife booked the holiday through Travel Republic, who have been in contact to say they will try to sort the problem. He said: “We do not know if we can go on our holiday. It came as a nasty shock, particularly as we thought we had overcome the previous hurdle of the situation with Ryanair - who we are due to fly home with. We remain optimistic something can be sorted out.”

A spokesman for Leeds Bradford Airport said it was working with the CAA and Government to support Monarch customers during what he called a “stressful time”, and urged people to visit the dedicated website monarch.caa.co.uk for details about flights.

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said: “This is a hugely distressing situation for British holidaymakers abroad and my first priority is to help them get back to the UK.

“That is why I have immediately ordered the country’s biggest ever peacetime repatriation to fly about 110,000 passengers who could otherwise have been left stranded abroad.

“This is an unprecedented response to an unprecedented situation.”