Flight diverted after tantrum over meal choice
A United Airlines flight from Houston bound for Amsterdam this weekend instead had to make an emergency landing in Chicago to remove an unruly passenger — who was reportedly angry he wasn’t able to have his first choice of an in-flight meal.
The Sunday flight had to be diverted due to a “passenger disturbance,” according to a statement from United Airlines.
About 3.5 hours after takeoff in Houston, United Airlines Flight 20 landed in Chicago.
When the plane landed at O’Hare International Airport, the disruptive passenger was escorted off the plane by local law enforcement there, according to United Airlines.
A United Airlines representative did not immediately respond to additional questions about the situation.
According to a Twitter user who posts about airline miles and deals and who claimed to have direct knowledge of the situation from a passenger on the flight, the later-removed passenger apparently had been “livid over the fact his (first) choice of meal was not available.”
In another post the user wrote: “Obviously the passenger was noted to be intoxicated as well, but meal choice seems to have been an ‘enragement’ point,” XJonNYC posted on Twitter.
United Airlines had paused alcohol sales aboard flights in 2020, but resumed in 2021.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration, unruly behavior aboard a plane can lead to criminal charges or fines of as much as $37,000 per violation.
The flight’s other passengers did not make it to Amsterdam on time.
The flight took off from George Bush Intercontinental Airport around 5 p.m. Sunday and landed in Chicago at 8:23 p.m., according to recorded flight history. It was not until 10:19 p.m. that the plane took off again. It arrived at the intended destination, Amsterdam, approximately 3.5 hours later than scheduled.
A tracked path of the flight shows the plane circling the Chicago area above Lake Michigan before actually landing. According to Flightradar24 on Twitter, workers presumably had to engage in the practice of fuel dumping during that time. That’s because planes must sometimes dump fuel prior to an emergency landing in order to be at the proper weight to land. United representatives did not immediately respond to questions as to whether such a practice occurred in this instance.