Careless passenger causes international flight to make U-turn after using four-letter word to name his Bluetooth device
An international flight on Saturday night was forced to turn back because of a passenger’s Bluetooth device.
The United Airlines flight to Spain took off from Newark Liberty International Airport at around 6pm, but landed back at the airport at approximately 9.30pm after security was flagged down to examine a suspicious Bluetooth device called a ‘bomb’.
But the device ended up being a 16-year-old Fitbit.’ New York Post report.
According to Jordan Moore, one of the passengers on the plane who shared his experience on TikTok, passengers had already been instructed to turn off their devices, but the alarming name continued to indicate that the device was online.
‘This network was discovered by a passenger during takeoff and flight personnel were immediately notified,’ he wrote.
Yet even after a second request from crew members to turn off Bluetooth on all devices, the device remained online.
The situation was then ‘escalated up the chain of command’ and eventually a call was made to reverse the flight.
‘Staff continue to reassure us that they believe this is a “selfish prank” but that appropriate precautions must be taken to achieve the safest possible outcome,” Moore wrote, before complaining: “Who labels Bluetooth networks as a “BOMB”, what kind of sick joke is this?’
A United Airlines flight bound for Spain was forced to turn back on Saturday after a young passenger called his Fitbit a ‘bomb’ and it appeared to be present on his Bluetooth devices.
The flight took off from Newark Liberty International Airport around 6 p.m., but landed back at the airport at approximately 9:30 p.m.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey later confirmed the incident and said the plane had ‘landed’ [back in Newark] uneventful.”
All 190 passengers and 12 crew had to evacuate the Boeing 767, while Port Authority police along with K9 units screened the plane.
Transportation Security Administration and Customs and Border Patrol agents then re-screened all passengers before boarding the plane again.
“United Flight 236 from Newark to Palma de Mallorca, Spain, returned to Newark to address a potential safety concern,” a United spokesperson said.
‘The flight continued towards Palma de Mallorca with new crew.’
Flight records show the plane took off again at 2:19 a.m. the next morning.
The unidentified teenage passenger has not been charged with any local charges in the incident, but the FBI is currently investigating, according to the Post.
The Daily Mail has reached out to United, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the FBI for comment.
