A United Airlines flight to China made an unexpected return to the United States after a pilot realized they had forgotten their passport. United Airlines confirmed that United Flight 198, which was supposed to travel from Los Angeles to Shanghai, redirected back to San Francisco International Airport to exchange for a “new crew.”
The airline informed FOX Business that the flight, operated by a Boeing 787-9, landed in San Francisco for the pilot to retrieve their passport. United Airlines provided passengers with meal vouchers and compensation, although the specifics of these offerings were not disclosed. The airline expressed its commitment to ensuring the passengers reached their destination that evening with the new crew.
Onboard the flight were 257 passengers and 13 crew members. FlightAware, a flight tracking website, reported that the flight took off from Los Angeles International Airport at 1:54 PM PDT and landed in San Francisco at 5:52 PM CST.
A passenger, identified as Param Singh Kalra, voiced dissatisfaction on social media, describing the situation as “completely unacceptable” and questioning United Airlines about the compensation for the incident.