Delta Airlines Under Fire for Spoiled Meals: Can Passengers Get Compensation?
Airlines tend to provide the highest-class service to their clients. But these days it is hard to compete with such a variety of service providers and sometimes client experience suffers due to the airlines’ busy flight schedules. We can not close our eyes when things like these happen. Delta Airlines was mentioned in the news recently when they served spoiled food onboard, due to which the plane was diverted. The incident occurred in the midst of the peak summer travel season when Delta and its rivals are fighting over travelers.
- 2024-07-24
- 6:50 AM GMT
The path of the Delta flight that left Detroit for Amsterdam but was diverted to New York after passengers were served spoiled food.
On July 2nd flight DL 136 carrying 277 passengers from Detroit to Amsterdam had to make an emergency landing at New York’s JFK Airport after reports surfaced that portions of the in-flight meals were spoiled. Following the discovery that some of the meals were contaminated, medical experts advised crew members on the Airbus A330 to divert the flight. A CBS New York reported that 70 passengers became ill after consuming the meal. In addition, black mold was reported to be on some of the food. One passenger said they ate the chicken but were unable to finish it because “it was really sour”.
Some passengers on the flight, including Barbara Smith of Northville, Michigan, were lucky enough not to eat the food. She remembers when the pilot came and told passengers that the meals were contaminated. The crew didn’t feel comfortable going across the Atlantic with people on board who could be possibly dealing with a foodborne illness, said Smith. Following that, flight attendants began asking passengers if they were okay. According to Smith of CBS News Detroit, as the plane turned around, passengers were showing symptoms, and many were getting up to use the restroom.
Apparently, flight attendants were only alerted about a potential issue when passengers notified them about it. One passenger said a flight attendant told them that both pilots ate some of the food as well. Food poisoning can cause symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps, and diarrhea within 30 minutes of consuming contaminated food, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Following the diversion, the airline said in a statement: “Delta’s Food Safety team has engaged our suppliers to immediately isolate the product and launch a thorough investigation into the incident.”The statement continued: “This is not the service Delta is known for and we sincerely apologize to our customers for the inconvenience and delay in their travels.” Delta Airlines pulled some meal options from dozens of international flights on Wednesday hours after this incident.
The path of the Delta flight.
Passengers were given food and hotel vouchers, and the flight was scheduled to take off from JFK airport at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday.
For all passengers on Delta Airlines flight DL136 on July 2nd, 2024, who experienced the flight diversion which disrupted their travel plans due to spoiled food, you are eligible for flight compensation of 600 Euros!
Of course, airlines can always be sneaky and do not fully inform people that their disrupted trips can be compensated. But Skycop is here to help you. Your flight – our fight!
