A United Airlines airplane flying to Boston from Houston stopped at a North Virginia airport Sunday because of a customer’s medical issue.
An airline news release said a customer was experiencing a medical problem on flight 2477 traveling from Houston to Boston. Airline officials did not disclose details of the medical problem.
The flight landed at Washington Dulles International Airport in Dulles, Virginia.In audio shared on X, the pilot urgently informed air traffic control, “Especially with this being a biohazard, I think we need to get this plane on the ground ASAP.”The audio was provided by popular real-time flight tracking site RadarBox. Newsweek shared this with United Airlines, which did not refute its authenticity.
The pilot also described a dire situation onboard, noting that after consulting with a doctor and cabin crew, the conditions were “really bad,” with crew members vomiting and passengers requesting masks.
A United Airlines spokesperson confirmed to Newsweek that the aircraft departed Washington-Dulles at 5:17 pm CT on Sunday to continue to its original destination, Boston.
They also reported that none of the 155 passengers or 6 crew members aboard the Boeing 737-800 required medical assistance upon arrival.
A biohazard event typically involves exposure to biological substances like feces, vomit, or blood, which can spread harmful viruses and pose serious health risks.
A similar event occurred back in September 2023, when a Delta Air Lines flight from Atlanta to Barcelona had to turn back after a passenger “had diarrhea all the way through the airplane,” according to air traffic control.
The Airbus, carrying 336 passengers, was forced to return over central Virginia and landed back in Atlanta just two hours after take-off.
Upon arrival back in Atlanta, the plane was thoroughly cleaned before passengers were allowed to reboard for their rescheduled flight to Barcelona. The delay pushed the departure back by eight hours from the original schedule.
It is unclear whether the passenger who experienced the gastrointestinal issue was on board when the flight eventually landed in Spain.
“Our teams worked as quickly and safely as possible to get our customers to their final destination. We sincerely apologize to our customers for the delay and inconvenience to their travel plans,” a Delta spokesperson said at the time.