All Three British Airways Pilots On Flight From India Suffer Food Poisoning, A Scene Straight Out Of “Airplane!”

All the pilots in the flight deck of a recent British Airways flight from India to the UK became violently ill, to the point that one was even incapacitated. It’s believed that the “culprit” here was their layover hotel, where they all ate together. As you’d expect, the airline is now investigating. British Airways pilot incapacitated due to food poisoningHotel club lounge breakfast believed to be at faultBottom line British Airways pilot incapacitated due to food poisoning Details are coming to light about an incident that happened on a recent British Airways flight from Hyderabad (HYD) to London (LHR), flight BA276, operated by a Boeing 777-200ER. This flight is blocked at roughly 11 hours, meaning there are three pilots in the flight deck, so that they can take turns resting while at cruise. However, there didn’t actually end up being much rest on this flight, and it sounds like they instead just took turns in the bathroom. It’s not clear when the issues started, but at some point during the flight, one of the first officers became violently ill, to the point that he was incapacitated, and had to be put on oxygen. Meanwhile the other two pilots also had symptoms of food poisoning, but could continue working. Fortunately, those symptoms only worsened significantly after the plane landed back in the UK, and the airline insists that the safety of passengers wasn’t compromised. All three pilots filed Air Safety Reports over the incident, and were asked to provide samples, so that doctors could try to pinpoint the source. The concept of all pilots on a flight becoming sick from food poisoning is of course the very theme of the 1980s movie “Airplane!” All three pilots become ill after they ate the fish. While that was of course dramatized for Hollywood, the concept behind this is real — at most airlines, the captain and first officer can’t order the same meal in flight, to minimize the odds of food poisoning. Hotel club lounge breakfast believed to be at fault The three pilots had eaten breakfast together in the club lounge at their layover hotel in Hyderabad the morning of the flight, and it’s believed that this was the source of the food poisoning. However, union officials are furious, pointing out that there have been “dozens” of complaints about hygiene at the layover hotel in Hyderabad, yet the airline hasn’t done anything about it. British Airways is now investigating this incident, sharing that “the welfare of our colleagues is a top priority and we are reviewing crew accommodation in this location following some isolated reports of sickness.” The plane still made it back to Heathrow without incident Bottom line A British Airways flight from Hyderabad to London didn’t go as planned, after the three pilots all had symptoms of food poisoning. One of the pilots even became incapacitated, and needed oxygen, while the other two pilots had symptoms, but they only worsened upon landing. The union representing pilots claims that the carrier’s layover hotel in Hyderabad has received a lot of complaints about hygiene, yet the airline hasn’t done anything about it. Now British Airways is finally taking this seriously, and is investigating. What do you make of this British Airways food poisoning incident?