Delta Air Lines flight returns to Atlanta due to passenger’s severe diarrhoea, causing eight-hour delay

A transatlantic Delta flight from the United States to Spain had to return after just two hours of flying on Friday night (1 September) due to a passenger experiencing severe diarrhoea. The pilot described it as a “health hazard.” The flight experienced an eight-hour delay.

One hour into flight DL194 from Atlanta to Barcelona – a flight that normally takes eight hours – the pilot requested permission to return. The cause was not a technical issue with the Airbus A350 (registered N570DZ) but a medical one. “There is a health hazard. We have a passenger on board with diarrhoea all over, and that’s why they want us to return to Atlanta,” the pilot communicated with air traffic control and through ACARS (chat).

The flight didn’t arrive in Barcelona until the following day at 17:00, eight hours later than scheduled. The original departure had already been delayed by two hours even before the incident involving the sick passenger. The second flight was operated with the same aircraft as the first, so the plane had to undergo thorough cleaning in the meantime. Delta told “Insider” that the aircraft did indeed have to return to Atlanta for cleaning but referred to it as “a medical issue” without providing further details.

This incident marked the second unfortunate event involving a Delta flight in four days. The previous Tuesday, eleven passengers on a flight from Milan to Atlanta were taken to the hospital after sustaining injuries due to severe turbulence.