Stranded Virgin Passengers Sleep ‘All Over the Floor’
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Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via Getty Images(NEW YORK) — A Virgin Atlantic flight was forced to make an emergency landing this weekend, forcing more than 250 passengers to spend the night “all over the floor” in a Newfoundland, Canada, airport.
The flight departed from London and was scheduled to arrive at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport just before midnight Saturday but instead made an emergency landing at Gander International Airport after pilots noticed a fuel leak mid-flight.
“Yes, we have a fuel leak, suspected fuel leak,” the pilot told the control tower.
After safely landing at the airport late Saturday, passengers had to sleep on chairs and benches in Gander Airport because Virgin says it was unable to book accommodations for passengers.
“We were sleeping on the floor of the bathroom and on the counters in the bathroom. All over the floor in the airport,” passenger Anna Ninan said.
In a statement, Virgin Atlantic apologized for “any inconvenience caused” and has offered a round-trip ticket to passengers.
After what was supposed to be an eight hour trip turned into a 27-hour nightmare, passengers were finally glad to arrive at JFK Sunday evening.
“We’re just really, really thankful to be in New York,” passenger Maya Torayn said.
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