British Airways passengers from London to Mexico had a 9-hour flight to nowhere when their plane U-turned 150 miles off the coast of Canada

Tech Insider : Business, Economy, Style
British Airways Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft as seen on final approach flying over the houses of Myrtle avenue in London a famous location for plane spotting, for landing at London Heathrow Airport LHR
A British Airways Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images

A 165-mile journey over the Irish Sea turned into a 2.5-hour flight to nowhere when a storm stopped the plane from landing

Tech Insider : Business, Style
Boeing 737-400 Ryanair aircraft identification code. Planes at Leonardo Da Vinci international airport in Fiumicino. Fiumicino (Italy), August 10st, 2025
A Ryanair Boeing 737.

Massimo Insabato/Archivio Massimo Insabato/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images

A Delta flight from Paris to Minneapolis U-turned after less than 20 minutes in the air

Tech Insider : Business, Travel
An Airbus A330-323 from Delta Air Lines takes off from Barcelona airport in Barcelona on March 18, 2025.
A Delta Airbus A330-323 bound for Minneapolis was forced to loop back to Paris minutes after takeoff due to a flap-related mechanical alert.

Joan Valls/Urbanandsport/NurPhoto via Getty Images

United passengers faced an 8-hour flight to nowhere when their plane U-turned midway across the Atlantic

Tech Insider : Business
A United 787 landing in Los Angeles.
The unique routes are possible because United inherited the fifth-freedom rights after acquiring the now-defunct Pan Am's Pacific routes in 1985.

Kevin Carter/Getty Images

An American Airlines flight made an emergency landing after the pilots mistakenly thought someone was trying to break into the cockpit

Tech Insider : Business, Style
An American Eagle American Airlines Embraer E175LR takes off from Los Angeles International Airport on January 24, 2025 in Los Angeles, California.
A problem with the plane's intercom and knocking on the cockpit door made the pilots think someone was trying to break in.

AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

An Airbus A380 from Australia to South Africa took passengers on a 9-hour flight to nowhere after a satellite issue

Tech Insider : Business, Style
Qantas Airbus A380 aircraft as seen flying and landing at London Heathrow Airport LHR.
A Qantas Airbus A380.

Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images

A United flight from Paris to DC had to U-turn to avoid flying across the Atlantic without enough working bathrooms

Tech Insider : Business, Style, Travel
A United Airlines Boeing 767 is at London Heathrow Airport in London, United Kingdom, on June 10, 2023.
A United Airlines Boeing 767.

MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images

A United flight to Greenland U-turned after airport security staff were told they weren't properly trained to screen the passengers

Tech Insider : Business, Style, Travel
A United Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 airplane departs from Los Angeles International Airport en route to Baltimore on March 30, 2025 in Los Angeles, California.
A United Airlines Boeing 737 Max.

Kevin Carter/Getty Images

Arizona dust storm forces dozens of flight diversions

Tech Insider : Business
A giant dust storm approaches the Phoenix metro area as a monsoon storm pushes the dust into the air, Monday, Aug. 25, 2025, in Phoenix.
A haboob rolled through Phoenix on Monday evening.

AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin

United passengers from New York to London endured a flight to nowhere and an 11-hour delay — then got to the UK after their original plane

Tech Insider : Business, Style, Travel
A Boeing 767-424 of United Airlines takes off from Berlin-Brandenburg
A United Airlines Boeing 767.

Soeren Stache/picture alliance via Getty Images

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