Passengers’ terror as mystery illness strikes down half of plane’s cabin crew in mid-air
A TRANSATLANTIC flight was forced to turn back after a mystery illness struck down half the cabin crew and several passengers.
Travellers on the jet going from London to Los Angeles looked on in shock as one of the air stewardesses collapsed in an aisle, before the captain declared a ‘medical emergency’.
As the unexplained illness spread through the plane causing nausea, dizziness and vertigo, the crew pleaded for any medics on board to treat the sick.
A doctor came forward to administer oxygen, before the captain turned the American Airlines jet around amid fears that the stricken crew and passengers may have been poisoned.
Ambulances and fire engines surrounded the plane as it touched down back at Heathrow, around five hours after setting off.
But paramedics were denied entry for 45 minutes, as tests on the plane and the passengers’ luggage tried unsuccessfully to pinpoint what was behind the illness.
Experts later suggested several potential causes – including a problem in the galley where the crew cook food, a fault with the air conditioning system and a chemical leak from a passenger’s bag.
Experts have also raised fears that pressurised air in cabins tainted with jet fuel can cause a condition known as aerotoxic syndrome. This is thought to have been behind pilots, crew and frequent fliers falling ill in the past.
The drama unfolded around two hours into the journey on Wednesday afternoon as the Boeing 777, which cruises at around 37,000ft, flew over Iceland.
Dr Barbara Persons, who went to the aid of passengers and crew, told MailOnline: ‘A flight attendant had passed out just outside of the business class lavatory and I attended to her first.
‘She awoke after about a minute, then lost consciousness again before being placed on oxygen. Five other flight attendants and one passenger, an older gentleman who had recently had an aortic valve replacement, all felt ill.
‘ I placed them on oxygen, assessed all and talked to captain Frank McGill. He made the immediate decision to fly back to Heathrow.’ The doctor from Lafayette, California, who had visited the UK for a conference, said two of those she treated described smelling a slight electrical or burning scent, but firemen who carried out a sweep of the cabin after landing found no cause for concern.
Dr Persons praised the pilot’s decision, saying: ‘If it had been something coming from a bag or carbon monoxide, and we had carried on, we all could have died.’ Fellow traveller Alan Gray, 41, said: ‘The captain said he was turning the plane around.
‘He said he wasn’t willing to take the risk to keep going and hadn’t got the crew to do it
‘Three passengers became really unwell ... and a few others were turning a bit pale.’
After the landing, Mr Gray said the plane was held for 45 minutes while tests were carried out on the cabin air. Paramedics were then allowed on board and luggage was confiscated for examination.
London Fire Brigade said tests on the plane did not find any ‘elevated levels of any substances’.
A London Ambulance Service spokesman said: ‘We checked over six patients who were feeling unwell. They were discharged on scene.’
American Airlines said the jet had turned back due to a ‘medical emergency’ and that a full investigation yesterday found no problems with the aircraft. A spokesman added: ‘Out of an abundance of caution, all of the air filters on the aircraft were replaced.’