A London-bound flight from Cancun turned into a 17-hour travel nightmare after two passengers allegedly smoked in the airplane bathroom, forcing the pilot to divert to the US.
Terry Lawrance, 66, who was on the TUI flight to London Gatwick, described scenes of frustration and exhaustion as stranded travelers were eventually kept overnight at Bangor International Airport in Maine.
"After an hour the captain came on and said someone had been smoking in the toilet — he read the riot act and said if it continues, we'd have to divert," Lawrance told the Mirror. Despite the warning, the flight was eventually rerouted after another three and a half hours in the air.
The accused couple was escorted off the plane. "They were obviously drunk," Lawrance said.
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Passengers were stuck onboard for an additional five hours after landing as paperwork was handled, only to be told the crew had run out of legally permitted working hours. A new crew had to be flown in from the UK, leaving weary travelers camped out on makeshift airbeds in what Lawrance described as "like a warzone in a lounge," with "rows and rows of beds."
"We were there for over 12 hours...everybody was fed up," he said. "It was like a free-for-all for vultures."
The relief flight eventually departed the next day, with all passengers now safely home. TUI declined to comment on the incident.
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