Passengers on flight stopped by diarrhoea say it 'dribbled down the aisle'

05 September 2023 , 14:37

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The incident happened aboard a Delta flight (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

A passenger on a Delta Airlines flight that was forced to turn back after someone suffered a case of catastrophic diarrhoea, has claimed it "dribbled down the aisle".

The Delta flight was just two hours into its journey from Atlanta, US, to Barcelona, Spain, when the pilot made the decision to turn the plane around and fly back to Atlanta claiming there was a "medical issue" onboard.

In an audio transmission from the flight deck posted on X (formerly ) by an aviation enthusiast, the pilot of Flight DL194 said: “This is a biohazard issue. We’ve had a passenger who’s had diarrhoea all the way through the aeroplane, so they want us to come back to Atlanta.”

The alleged flight progress strip detailing the incident was posted on social media

According to someone who claimed their partner was on the plane, the person behind the faecal explosion had to be carried off the flight by emergency services once the plane had landed.

Commenting under news of the fiasco on X, Dee W said: "My partner was on that flight! It was pretty bad. It was dribbled down the aisle, smelled horrible. The vanilla scented disinfectant used on it only made it smell like vanilla s***. After the plane landed, it was thoroughly cleaned. They didn’t leave until around 2.30am"

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The plane was cleaned, with one passenger reporting the carpets had to be ripped up, and flew to Barcelona the next day. It didn't get in until 5pm, eight hours later than it was scheduled to arrive.

The plane only got as far as Virginia before being forced to turn back

Responding to questions about the incident, Dee W said: "The flight was met by emergency vehicles and EMTs carried the sick passenger off the plane. My partner said the plane was cleaner when they got back on at 2am than it was the first time they got on. No smell either."

Explaining what happened when the flight landed in Atlanta after turning back, Dee wrote: "It was bad enough that the flight was met by emergency vehicles and the poor passenger was carried out by EMTs."

Twitter user John Hurdt, who claimed to be onboard, wrote: "Both my wife and I were on the flight. It was a mess. The pilots made the right decision to turn around. The ground crew ripped out the carpet and put new in. Considering the circumstances, the ground crew did a great job, along the attendants and the pilots."

A spokesperson for the airline told Insider: "Delta flight 194 from Atlanta to Barcelona returned to Atlanta following an onboard medical issue.

"Our teams worked as quickly and safely as possible to thoroughly clean the aeroplane and get our customers to their final destination. We sincerely apologise to our customers for the delay and inconvenience to their travel plans."

Charlie Jones