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American Airlines flight AA2421 from San Juan’s Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU) to Miami International Airport (MIA) was forced to make a rather interesting diversion as a result of Hurricane Debby. The plane landed at Lynden Pindling International Airport (NAS) in The Bahamas. Unfortunately, most of the passengers traveling did not have passports and found themselves trapped in the terminal as illegal immigrants since they could not be processed to enter Nassau without their documentation.
@italiankate @American Airlines #americanairlines #flight #flightdelay #customerservice
With the storm in its path, the pilots were forced to land the plane in a foreign country. The crew then timed out, which left the passengers herded into an empty terminal without food, drinks, or blankets overnight. Passengers were eventually able to board the aircraft and head to Miami International Airport (MIA) after more than 12 hours in the airport.
An American Airlines spokesperson released the following statement:
On August 3, American Airlines flight 2421 with service from Puerto Rico (SJU) to Miami (MIA) was impacted by severe weather and diverted to Nassau (NAS). The flight continued on to MIA once the weather conditions allowed us to safely do so. Operating safely is always our priority — especially in dynamic weather events — and we apologize to our customers for the inconvenience experienced as a result of the weather.”
Commenters are speculating that the passengers will receive significant compensation. I’m not so sure about that thought. Weather forced the diversion and although the situation was far from ideal, the passengers did safely get to their destination the next morning.
Anthony’s Take: I’m going to start carrying my passport just in case I get caught up in a situation like this one. Luckily, the aircraft was able to find a place to avoid the storm and there were no injuries.
(Featured Image Credit: American Airlines.)
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Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links above This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
3 comments
Anyone can look up the flight plan and see that American Airlines listed Lynden Pindling International Airport (NAS) in The Bahamas as the IFR alternate airport for landing. The crew was following directions from the airline and had likely run out of legal duty time to operate back to the US. This is 100% on the airline.
I always travel with my passport when I fly or travel comercial transportation,it’s just part of my “kit”.,.Ever since I was in high School…
When in New Orleans bus station in 1963 the immigration department checked for illegals !!!
The passengers without passports were not “illegal immigrants” – talk about hyperbole! They remained in the transit area as passengers in transit. Technically they never entered Bahamas. This is barely a story.