Thursday, December 07, 2006

Flatulent passenger grounds US flight

It may be one problem US airline security officials never envisioned - a passenger lighting matches in flight to mask odours from her flatulence.
The woman's actions resulted in an emergency landing in Nashville of an American Airlines flight bound for Dallas from Washington DC, a spokeswoman for Nashville's airport, Lynne Lowrance, says.
Other passengers reported the odour of burnt matches, but the woman was not forthcoming when asked about it, Ms Lowrance says.
"Of course, she was scared and embarrassed but all the passengers had to disembark, all the luggage had to be searched, a canine team was brought in, and about three hours were consumed in sorting out the situation," she said.
The woman was not allowed back on the flight and barred from flying on American Airlines, Ms Lowrance says.
"Since there was no malice involved and the incident was accidental, she was not charged with anything," she said.
Passengers are permitted four books of paper safety matches on a plane but cannot light them during flight, Ms Lowrance says.
"I've had calls from people all over the country about this and I don't have the answer to this problem," she said

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