Passenger Causes Five-Hour Delay, Gets Removed From Flight Due to Fish Meal

Image: Airport flight status board. (Photo via phive2015 / iStock / Getty Images Plus)
Image: Airport flight status board. (Photo via phive2015 / iStock / Getty Images Plus)
Donald Wood
by Donald Wood
Last updated: 9:10 AM ET, Wed March 6, 2019

A business class passenger on an Air Canada flight caused a delay of over five hours after he realized he would not be served the fish meal he requested.

According to CTVNews.ca, Air Canada Flight AC118 was preparing for a cross-country journey from Vancouver International Airport to Toronto Saturday when attendants started taking meal requests from passengers.

A male passenger sitting in the business class section of the plane requested a fish meal due to his inability to eat meat or gluten, but was informed there were no more fish meals available and became belligerent.

An unidentified passenger on the plane said the man became verbally abusive of the attendant, saying, "If I don't get fish, there will be a problem. One way or another, I will get my fish, either you serve it to me or I will serve it to myself."

As a result of the disruptive passenger's comments, the pilot decided to return to the gate and the man was removed from the plane. Unfortunately for the other travelers onboard, the delay took so long that Air Canada was forced to replace its pilots.

As a result, passengers had to wait over five hours before a new crew could be sent to Vancouver to complete the flight. While originally scheduled to depart at 2 p.m. local time, the plane eventually took off at around 7:30 p.m. local time.


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Donald Wood

Donald Wood

Managing Editor

Donald Wood is TravelPulse’s Managing Editor, bringing nearly 15 years of experience to the desk. He currently lives outside Philadelphia with his wife and two children.

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