Man Throws Tantrum Over Meal on Plane, Diverts Flight
The plane was forced to land in Chicago and dump a lot of fuel.
Sometimes flying the skies isn't quite friendly. Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic it seems like mid-air meltdowns and disturbances have become the norm. According to the International Air Transport Association unruly passenger incidents increased 47% in 2022 compared with the year before, with an incident occurring once every 568 flights. From fights between passengers to intoxicated or simply rude people starting up with the flight crew to even trying to kiss them, a number of incidents have gotten attention in recent years. In the latest episode of Air Passengers Gone Wild, a business passenger reportedly threw an epic tantrum when their desired meal wasn't available, forcing the entire plane to make an unexpected stop.
United Flight 20 from Houston to Amsterdam took off at 4:20 local time on Sunday. Two hours into the long flight, they were in the Chicago airspace, circling around for two hours "fuel dumping" so they could land the plane.
Why did they need to land and dump fuel? According to Flightradar24, an "unruly passenger" required an emergency landing, and the plane was too heavy with all the fuel needed to make the long trip.
According to aviation insider XJonNYC a "disruptive [passenger] on board" became a threat level of one, the lowest level of threat. In another tweet, he specified that the passenger seemed to be enraged over meal choice.
"United flight 20 from George Bush Intercontinental Airport to Amsterdam diverted to O'Hare International Airport and landed safely following a passenger disturbance," United said in a statement to The Guardian.
"Law enforcement met the aircraft at the gate and escorted the passenger off the plane. The aircraft then continued to Amsterdam," it continued.
The usual 9.5-hour flight ended up arriving in Amsterdam over three hours later than its expected time. According to Live and Let's Fly, business class passengers flying from Newark to Amsterdam had a choice between seared beef short rib, seared lemon grass salmon, or ricotta salata and wild honey manicotti as their main meal. It is unclear what meal the passenger wanted.
