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A routine gesture of appreciation turned into a frightening ordeal for several British Airways crew members after they unknowingly consumed marijuana-infused gummies given to them by a passenger. Thankfully, the crew was not impacted while in flight, but the gift caused them to need medical attention and has raised questions as to why the gift was given in the first place.
The incident occurred on a British Airways flight operating from London Heathrow Airport (LHR) to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) last week. According to reports, a passenger handed cabin crew a bag of gummy bears as a small thank-you gift. What appeared to be an innocent treat later turned out to contain an extremely potent dose of THC.
Fortunately, the crew did not eat the sweets while in the air. Reports indicate that the gummies were consumed only after the aircraft had landed at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) while the crew was traveling on a bus to their hotel. Soon after eating the candy, several crew members began feeling unwell and disoriented. Three reportedly consumed most of the gummies and experienced intense reactions. These were described as out-of-body sensations, panic, and fear as the effects worsened. After closer inspection, the sweets were determined to be marijuana edibles. The packaging suggested that the product contained up to 300 milligrams of THC, which is an extraordinarily high amount to consume at once. The affected crew members were taken to a hospital for evaluation and treatment.
British Airways responded by removing the entire crew assigned to the flight. A replacement crew was quickly arranged to operate the return service from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) back to London Heathrow Airport (LHR). The crew members involved were flown home several days later as passengers rather than working staff (once they had recovered). In a statement, the airline confirmed that a small number of crew reported feeling unwell but have since recovered and emphasized that there was no impact on passengers.
British Airways has reportedly launched an investigation to identify the passenger who handed out the drug-laced sweets. While cabin crew are subject to strict drug-testing policies, this case is being treated as an honest mistake since the crew members were unaware of what they had consumed. Sources close to the situation stressed that while some might view the incident as bizarre or even humorous that it carries serious implications. If such substances had been consumed mid-flight, there could have been an issue with flight operations and safety.
Passengers occasionally bring packaged snacks like cookies or chocolates, Starbucks gift cards, and more as tokens of gratitude for airline crews. While these gestures are usually appreciated, this incident highlights the potential risks of consuming unfamiliar items without carefully checking labels. It remains unclear whether British Airways will revise its policies around accepting gifts from passengers, but the episode is likely to prompt renewed caution across the industry.
Anthony’s Take: The airline continues to treat the matter seriously as authorities work to determine how and why marijuana edibles ended up being distributed to crew members on an international flight. Taking 300mg at once will definitely cause you to feel it. I’m a big fan of edibles, but would never consume an amount anywhere close to that at once.
(Image Credits: Roman Budnyi via iStock and British Airways.)
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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.
