TOKYO- A group of 34 passengers, including high school students traveling from Guam to Japan, displayed symptoms of suspected food poisoning (fall ill) on two separate flights, Japan Airlines (JL) Flight 942 and United Airlines (UA) Flight 873, both of which landed at Narita Airport on Thursday night, officials reported.
34 Fall ill on Two Flights
The Tokyo Narita Airport (NRT) office and Chiba Prefecture authorities stated that of the affected passengers, 16 were on Japan Airlines Flight 942, while 18 were on United Airlines Flight 873.
Symptoms primarily included vomiting, with some passengers showing signs of illness even before boarding.
After the flights landed, 14 of the passengers required hospital care, though others managed symptoms without immediate medical assistance.
Japan Airlines informed airport authorities that it does not believe inflight meals caused the illness, based on reports that some passengers experienced symptoms before boarding.
Japanese authorities are investigating the incident to determine the source of the suspected food poisoning and to rule out other possible causes.
Similar Incidents
In July 2024, Delta Air Lines (DL) temporarily limited meal options on 75 international flights, offering only pasta after an emergency landing occurred due to passengers falling ill from suspected food contamination.
The Detroit-to-Amsterdam flight was diverted to New York’s JFK Airport on July 3 after approximately 24 passengers became sick, reportedly from moldy chicken that was also consumed by the pilots.
Delta instructed staff to inspect all meal dishes closely before serving, implementing the meal restriction “out of an abundance of caution.” This adjustment was in place for only two days, during which Delta continued its flight meal changes on international routes. Delta has since restored all meal choices.
In October 2024, Delta further suspended hot meal service on over 200 flights departing from Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW) following a separate food safety issue at its catering facility.
The airline stopped operations at the affected kitchen and sourced hot meals from alternative facilities to ensure food safety.
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