Travel News

Delta Flight Diverted After Passengers Became Ill From Contaminated Food

a plane flying in the sky
Written by Charlie

This Delta flight was forced to divert after more than 20 people became ill from contaminated food served onboard.

Delta Air Lines flight 136 from Detroit to Amsterdam had to divert just off the edge of Canada after they found they had served contaminated food to passengers. The flight diverted to JFK and arrived a few hours ago.

Delta Flight 136 Diverted Due to Contaminated Food

According to this article in the Daily Mail and from statements they received, there were 24 cases of people who had become ill from the spoiled food served onboard the plane. That included 10 members of the flight crew and 14 passengers. Medical staff met the plane upon landing in JFK though the affected people declined to receive medical attention.

Flightradar24 tracking of the flight

There were 277 passengers onboard. Delta’s statement said that it was food served to the Main Cabin and that portions of it were spoiled. It may seem a little strange that the crew were disproportionately sick from it compared to the passengers but my guess it was a meal that was not chosen by a majority of the cabin (and so that would be what the crew would eat). Things like pasta and meat dishes typically go first (I almost always choose a pasta dish).

The illness hit them fairly quickly after eating it. The meal service takes place after reaching altitude and then can take a while to complete in the main cabin. They turned around to head to JFK 2.5 hours into the flight.

Passengers were given hotel and meal vouchers but there were at least a couple of passengers saying they aren’t looking for vouchers, they need to be in Amsterdam today.

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About the author

Charlie

Charlie has been an avid traveler and runner for many years. He has run in marathons around the world for less than it would cost to travel to the next town - all as a result of collecting and using miles and points. Over the years, he has flown hundreds of thousands of miles and collected millions of miles and points.
Now he uses this experience and knowledge to help others through Running with Miles.