Ryanair passengers scream and pray during petrifying landing in Storm Eowyn

A passenger onboard a Ryanair flight has recounted the terrifying moment the aircraft landed in Ireland amidst the life-threatening winds of Storm Eowyn.

Ireland is currently under a red weather warning by the Met Office, the most severe alert which signals a realistic threat to life.

Lorraine Carney, from County Cork, was one of around 200 passengers aboard a plane that landed in Cork Airport on January 24, after departing from Gran Canaria.

Lorraine described the final 30 minutes of the flight as “tricky” and “absolutely frightening” as she explained how the plane’s first landing had to be aborted because of the winds battering the aircraft.

As the plane came in for a second attempt, Lorraine describes how a terrified silence gripped the plane with nothing to be heard other than the prayers of those taking no chances.

Lorraine told RTE’s Today show: “The plane was shaking from side to side. You could hear the rain battering against the windows and it was like rain I’ve never heard before.”

The plane was buffeted by wind as it hit the tarmac, giving the impression to many onboard that they were still in the air.

Lorraine praised the skill of the pilot Captain Jim Allen, lauding his skill in bringing the aircraft to land in treacherous conditions.

She added: “I don’t know how he landed the plane because it was literally shaking from side to side.”

The storm has caused travel chaos across the country, with several major airports temporarily closing or cancelling flights.

It is estimated that a fifth of all flights from UK and Irish airports cancelled, according to aviation analytics company Cirium.

Wind speed records were broken this morning as 114mph gales wrecked chaos through Galway amid a sea of rare red weather warnings across parts of the country.