34 Passengers Sick After Suspected Food Poisoning on Tokyo-Bound United and Japan Airlines Flights

According to Japanese officials, 34 passengers fell ill on two separate flights from Guam to Tokyo Thursday night. 
 

The group of travelers, which included high school students making the trip from Guam to Japan, were suspected of encountering food poisoning. 

Dozens of Vomiting and Sick Passengers on Flights to Japan

According to Tokyo Narita Airport Officials and Chiba Prefecture authorities, 16 of the 34 ill passengers were on a Japan Airlines flight (JL942) from Guam to Tokyo while the other 18 were on a separate United Airlines flight (UA873). 

On both flights, infected passengers reported symptoms consistent with food poisoning, primarily ranging from light to severe vomiting. 

After landing at Tokyo Narita International Airport (NRT), 14 passengers across both flights were taken to a local hospital for medical treatment. Most other passengers experiencing symptoms did not require immediate medical assistance. 

Japanese authorities have already launched an investigation into the incident to determine the cause of the illness that affected passengers on two separate flights. 

According to a Japan Airlines statement to airport authorities, the airline does not believe its inflight meals were responsible for the illness. Some passengers reported feeling sick before boarding the flight. 

Currently, officials believe the group likely contracted the illness while still in Guam, possibly explaining why passengers on two separate flights by two different airlines experienced similar symptoms. 

Details of JL942 and UA873

The two affected flights, Japan Airlines Flight 942 and United Airlines 873 are regularly scheduled nonstop services between Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport (GUM) on the Pacific island of Guam and Tokyo Narita International Airport (NRT) some 35 miles northeast of Tokyo. 

JL942 is Japan Airlines’ once-daily connection between Guam and Tokyo, operated by one of the airline’s 27 Boeing 767-300s. The flight departs GUM at 4:35 p.m. local time, arriving in Tokyo at 7:25 p.m. after 3 hours and 50 minutes in the air. Thursday’s flight was flown by JA618J, often seen flying between Japan, Guam, Hanoi, Singapore, and other international destinations. 

On the other hand, UA873 is operated by one of United’s Pacific-based Boeing 737s, connecting the carrier’s long-time base in Guam with their rapidly expanding one in Tokyo. UA873 leaves Guam 25 minutes later than JL942 at 5:00 p.m., arriving in Narita 3 hours and 55 minutes later at 7:55 p.m. On Thursday, the leg was flown by N37293, a Boeing 737-800  that visits destinations across southeastern Asia. 

Similar Incidents

Over the past few months, there have been several other notable health-related incidents on flights around the world.
 

In mid-October, Delta Air Lines paused hot meal service on all of its Detroit flights due to food safety concerns in its catering facilities. The incident followed a Delta flight from Detroit to Amsterdam, on which the airline served spoiled chicken to 24 passengers, requiring an immediate diversion to New York’s JFK airport for medical assistance. 

In addition, perhaps one of the strangest incidents recently was when a mouse jumped out of a passenger’s in-flight meal, forcing a Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) flight to make an emergency landing in Copenhagen (CPH).