Passengers had to wait for 14 hours whilst on a freezing plane!

United’s flight 179 was supposed to fly from Newark, New Jersey (U.S.A.) to Hong Kong. Unexpectedly, the flight had to be diverted due to a medical emergency. The plane landed in Canada, Goose Bay airport to be precise, and the passenger was taken to a hospital immediately where he was treated.

Crisis averted, the plane was supposed to resume its route when a problem with one of the aircraft’s doors was made evident. This meant that the aeroplane had to be repaired and that the crew and passengers had to disembark. A different problem surged. Goose Bay’s customs were closed and, therefore, passengers had to remain inside the plane. Outside temperatures reached -25 degrees celsius and the plane started to get very cold.

Delayed in Canada

According to one of the passengers, buses were necessary in order to transfer them to a replacement aircraft and they were flown back to Newark 16 hours after landing in Goose Bay.

Finally got off plane, got on a bus and now waiting to be taken to new rescue plane to fly back to Newark. 16hours since we landed in Goose Bay. pic.twitter.com/nBb0zKwOba

— SONJAY (@sonjaydutterson) January 20, 2019

Passengers also noted that the crew did everything possible to ease the cold and tend to the passengers. Airport staff assisted them with bringing coffee and warm snachs to the passengers. United handled the problem in the best way possible. When passengers arrived back in Newark, their tickets were reimbursed and they were also compensated for the problem. Furthermore, United arranged hotel accommodations for the passengers who needed them and provided meals and refreshments. Most passengers were able to continue their travels to Hong-Kong after having been disrupted for almost two days. Other travellers decided to cancel their plans altogether.

We commend and congratulate United’s crew for handling a terrible scenario in the best way possible and making sure that passengers were treated with the respect and given the care they deserve. Can you imagine being stuck in a frozen plane for a tad more than 15 hours?

Flights cancelled or delayed due to bad weather

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