According to a United States airport official, an American Airlines flight was evacuated after a sick man gassed out violently, which caused the air to smell so badly that many passengers on board the flight felt nauseous and suffered from headaches. The flight had landed at Raleigh-Durham International or RDU airport in North Carolina on Sunday, July 16 at around 4 p.m. In the words of the airport official, the sick passenger “passed gas,” which led to the air inside the cabin smelling bad.
Airport clarifies stance, says it’s a mechanical issue
The smell was so bad that the fellow passengers soon started feeling ill and were rushed off the flight, said the RDU employee. The flight number and its origin city has not been publicized. However, it was clear that the aircraft was scheduled to land at the RDU and was not subjected to an emergency leading due to the smelly gas in the cabin. However, the airport later cleared the air that there had been a “medical issue” that took place on the flight and the Wake County Emergency Medical Services has taken responsibility for the situation.
American Airlines, on the other hand, could not confirm the details of the incident. The AA officials denied the origin of the smelly gas as a medical issue.
The officials also stated that the aircraft was taken into service due to the bad odor inside the cabin, but denied that it was a consequence of “passed gas” as stated by the RDU employee.
Official contradicts story
Another airline official was quoted saying that none of the stories of the “passed gas” was true, contradicting reports.
The official also stated that the flight which landed at the RDU at 2:19 p.m. was “out of service” for an actual mechanical issue – and “odor in the cabin”, which is not a result of passed gas. Moreover, the time frame stated by the American Airlines official does not match the time stated by the RDU, which has led to further confusion about this incident.
RDU spokesperson Andrew Sawyer also stated that the plane in question was never evacuated. The passengers were deplaned “normally” after the aircraft landed. He also stated that the “medical call regarding the odor affecting people came about post passengers deplaning as usual. However, amid the confusion and the mixed messages given out by airport and airline officials to media outlets, many social media users have taken on to Twitter to crack jokes about the alleged gassy passenger and the situation.
