Dozens of British passengers were left stranded on a Greek island for two days because of a technical fault and a 'turtle curfew'.

EasyJet apologised as around 180 passengers were affected after an EasyJet flight from Zante to Gatwick was cancelled on Sunday which the company said was initially due to a technical fault.

Engineers were unable to fix the problem and a replacement aircraft could not be sent due to a night curfew rule at the airport, which is reportedly in place to protect the island's endangered loggerhead turtles from lights and noise.

The airline said around a quarter of passengers flew home on alternative flights, while the remaining passengers returned on Tuesday.

A spokesman for the airline said: "Unfortunately, due to the night curfew rule at the airport, we were unable to get the replacement aircraft into the airport yesterday.

EasyJet said passengers affected by the delays will be entitled to compensation.