Farting Passenger Forces Plane to Land

from WBIR Knoxville TV 1o

Flatulence brought 99 passengers on an American Airlines flight to an unscheduled visit to Nashville early Monday morning. American Flight 1053, from Washington Reagan National Airport and bound for Dallas/Fort Worth, made an emergency landing here after passengers reported smelling struck matches. The plane landed safely. The FBI, Transportation Safety Administration and airport authority responded to the emergency.

The passengers and five crew members were brought off the plane, together with all the luggage, to go through security checks again. Bomb-sniffing dogs found spent matches.The FBI questioned a passenger who admitted she struck the matches in an attempt to conceal body odor. The woman lives near Dallas and has a medical condition.

The flight took off again, but the woman was not allowed back on the plane and has been banned from flying American Airlines for an undisclosed time period. No charges were filed.