A United Airlines flight heading to Shanghai from Los Angeles reportedly had to turn around after one of the pilots took off without his passport. Read More
A United Airlines flight heading to Shanghai from Los Angeles reportedly had to turn around after one of the pilots took off without his passport. Flight UA 198 departed LAX for its Chinese destination on Saturday at about 2 p.m., but about two hours into the flight, the jetliner was turned around and redirected to
A United Airlines flight heading to Shanghai from Los Angeles reportedly had to turn around after one of the pilots took off without his passport.
Advertisement 2
Story continues below
Article content
Article content
Article content
Flight UA 198 departed LAX for its Chinese destination on Saturday at about 2 p.m., but about two hours into the flight, the jetliner was turned around and redirected to San Francisco, where it landed around 5 p.m. local time, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware.
The flight had 257 passengers and 13 crew members on board at the time of the snafu.
“The pilot did not have their passport onboard,” United said in a statement to CNN.
“We arranged for a new crew to take our customers to their destination that evening,” they continued. “Customers were provided with meal vouchers and compensation.”
The second crew took off around 9 p.m. and landed in Shanghai more than six hours later than its original schedule.
Advertisement 3
Story continues below
Article content
Yang Shuhan, a Chinese passenger on board, told the news network that the pilot sounded “very frustrated” over the intercom, saying he “forgot [his] passport.”
Upon arrival in San Francisco, Yang received two meal vouchers amounting to $30, which she used for a meal at an airport restaurant.
RECOMMENDED VIDEO
We apologize, but this video has failed to load.
Try refreshing your browser, or
tap here to see other videos from our team.
She told CNN she also filed a compensation claim on United’s website, which informed her she would get a response within 14 business days.
Yang said she appreciated the pilot’s “honesty,” but other travellers were “outraged” and took to RedNote, a social media platform in China, to share their anger.
“How could someone mess up this badly at work?” one apparent passenger wrote in a RedNote post.
Recommended from Editorial
The delay also affected the return flight, UA 199 from Shanghai to L.A., which arrived at LAX nearly six-and-a-half-hours behind schedule, according to FlightAware.
A Shanghai-based business traveler, who requested anonymity, lamented to CNN that they had to change their ticket to catch a connecting flight.
“I’m feeling pretty frustrated,” they said after landing at LAX late Sunday.
“Because of the delay, I have to reschedule all my plans for Monday, which is really inconvenient.”
Article content
Join the conversation