United flight diverts mid-Atlantic after Bluetooth 'bomb' panic caused by teenager
There are bad ideas, and then there is naming your Bluetooth speaker after an explosive device before boarding a transatlantic flight.
United flight 236 was an hour into its journey from Newark to Palma de Mallorca on Saturday night when the crew made a decision that ruined everyone's holiday plans: they turned the plane around and headed straight back to the gate.
According to several reports, this was because a Bluetooth speaker with a very unfortunate name was showing up on the cabin's device list.
According to Simple Flying, the flight, operated on a Boeing 767-400ER, departed Newark Liberty International Airport at 6:08 PM local time before the situation escalated roughly 60 minutes into the transatlantic crossing.
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Multiple passengers who claimed to be on board took to Reddit to describe what unfolded, saying crew made repeated announcements asking everyone to switch off their Bluetooth.
A one-minute countdown was eventually issued, with the crew warning the plane would turn around if two devices still showing as active weren't switched off.
"This little joke is ruining it for everyone"
A flight attendant was reportedly heard telling the cabin: "This little joke is ruining it for everyone."
The person posted to Reddit: "Currently on a flight Newark to Palma. About an hour into the flight the flight attendant announces on the loud speaker that all passengers must turn off bluetooth immediately or we'll have to turn the plane around to Newark.
"They said it was an order from Chicago headquarters. They repeated the instruction multiple times, eventually giving a final '1 minute warning'.
"They most recently said there are still 2 active bluetooth devices and they are in communication with Chicago to understand next steps."
The devices stayed on, and the plane was turned around.
What was the Bluetooth speaker actually called?
A United ground team member confirmed the cause in an archived Air Traffic Control recording from LiveATC.net, stating that a passenger had named their Bluetooth device "a certain four-letter word", later reported by aviation news site AirLive as 'BOMB,' with early reports suggesting the device belonged to a teenage passenger on board.
"They have to inspect the whole aircraft, including the cargo area, and the passengers have to evacuate," the recording states.
Simple Flying reports that the aircraft squawked 7700, the emergency code, before landing back at Newark at 8:50 PM, almost three hours after it originally departed.
Passengers were reportedly told that up to ten agents would be waiting on the ground to identify the source of the threat. According to Simple Flying, passengers were eventually boarded onto a replacement flight.
United Airlines have been approached for comment.
Thomas Bamford