Seven flight attendants on a Los Angeles to Honolulu flight got sick Thursday afternoon from an odor nobody could identify. According to reports, the crew members experienced nausea and headaches, and Honolulu Emergency Medical Services met the aircraft at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport to evaluate them. All seven declined transport to the emergency room.
The flight was operated by Alaska Airlines under the Hawaiian Airlines brand. A Hawaiian Airlines spokesperson said no passengers were affected, and the plane was being inspected before returning to service. That last detail matters most for anyone boarding a flight in the coming days, whether you’re leaving Tampa International or catching a connection through Sarasota.
For Suncoast travelers, this story lands a little differently. Plenty of us make that long haul to the islands every winter, and we trust the crew to handle whatever comes up at 35,000 feet. Cabin air quality is one of those quiet safety issues that rarely makes headlines until something goes wrong. Crews breathe that air for a living, often on back-to-back legs, so when several of them get sick at once, it’s worth asking what inspectors find.
Have you ever noticed a strange smell on a flight? Tell us about it in the comments.
