A pilot forgot his passport, so he turned the plane around
A United Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Shanghai was forced to turn around midair Saturday after a pilot realized he had forgotten his passport, delaying passengers by several hours.
Flight 198, carrying 257 passengers and 13 crew members onboard, departed Los Angeles around 1:47 p.m. local time. About two hours into the transpacific journey, the aircraft diverted to San Francisco International Airport, where it landed just after 5 p.m., according to flight-tracking site FlightAware.
United Airlines confirmed to Paste BN that he pilot did not have their passport onboard. The airline said it arranged for a new crew to take the passengers to their destination that evening.
Customers were provided with meal vouchers and compensation, United confirmed.
The new flight left San Francisco around 8:30 p.m. and landed in Shanghai approximately six hours behind schedule.
Yang Shuhan, a passenger traveling home to China from a business trip, told CNN she heard the pilot’s “very frustrated voice” over the intercom, admitting he “forgot (his) passport.”