--- title: "Passenger on Ill-Fated Diarrhea Plane Says Flight Attendants Were Forced to Craft “Makeshift Biohazard Suits”" description: "We tracked down one of the diarrhea plane's unlucky passengers, who confirmed that the defecation disaster was indeed extensive." date: "2023-09-07" modified: "2023-09-07" authors: - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison" url: "https://futurism.com/passenger-diarrhea-plane" categories: - "Advanced Transport" tags: - "air traffic control" - "air travel" - "delta airlines" --- # Passenger on Ill-Fated Diarrhea Plane Says Flight Attendants Were Forced to Craft “Makeshift Biohazard Suits” ![We tracked down one of the diarrhea plane's unlucky passengers, who confirmed that the defecation disaster was indeed extensive.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* On Friday, an international Delta flight bound for sunny Barcelona was forced to U-turn back to its starting point, Atlanta, for an exceedingly rare air travel horror: a passenger had suffered diarrhea throughout the plane's aisle so extensively that completing the flight was deemed untenable. News of the incident first hit Reddit's r/ATC subreddit, to which a user shared [alarming FAA flight information]() marking the ill-fated flight's decision to turn around. "DIVERT TO ATL — PASSENGER DIARRHEA ALL OVER A/C," the flight strip read. "BIOHAZARD." The news then trickled to other social media platforms, going mainstream viral on X-formerly-Twitter when another netizen [shared a short clip]() of one of the plane's pilots' blunt conversation with air traffic control. "This is a biohazard issue," the pilot can be heard saying. "We've had a passenger who's had diarrhea all the way through the airplane, so they want us to come back to Atlanta." Yes, diarrhea, *all through the airplane.* It really did happen, and in an [official statement to *Insider*](), a representative for Delta described the incident as an "onboard medical issue," adding that its teams "worked as quickly and safely as possible to thoroughly clean the airplane and get our customers to their final destination." "We sincerely apologize to our customers," the rep continued, "for the delay and inconvenience to their travel plans." We tracked one of the plane's unlucky passengers down — and they confirmed that the diarrhea was, in fact, "ALL OVER" the cabin aisles, just as that flight strip read. "I woke up and there was a bit of a strange smell," the passenger, who chose to remain anonymous while speaking of his Diarrhea Plane experience, told *Futurism*, adding that the flight attendants were forced to perform some DIY ingenuity to deal with the excrement. "They found everything they could use," said the passenger, explaining that the airline staff used aprons to craft "makeshift biohazard suits" to wear while dealing with the defecatory disaster. Blankets and napkins, meanwhile, were utilized to cover the feces. The airline's staff "tried to handle it," said the passenger, but "it was just so bad." The passenger also noted their empathy for the person who had the unfortunate accident, explaining that the individual wound up staying in the lavatory until the last few minutes of the flight. "They just kind of kept \[the person\] in there," the passenger added. You might be imagining that Delta obviously just got these travelers a new plane, right? After all, this one was covered in human feces. But alas, there seemingly weren't enough jets to go around, and according to the passenger, the airline ultimately settled the issue by simply ripping out the Airbus' soiled carpets and giving the passenger plane an extra-thorough clean before reboarding it. "They actually took out all the carpets for one section of it," the passenger said. "We were waiting three hours at the airport while they were trying to clean it, but they couldn't clean it, so they had to rip off the carpet and change it." "Then we were back on," they added. "No problem." The passenger also noted that the plane's staff fully switched over for the second flight attempt, which we're glad to hear. Anyone who's forced to make a biohazard suit out of aprons and proceeds to manage an in-flight diarrhea crisis for the next several hours deserves some time off, not to mention a raise. Fortunately, the passenger said, the flight's second go-round went off without a hitch. "It was just so late, we passed out," the passenger recounted. "No issues after that, but it was certainly an ordeal." **More on airlines:** [*Double Decker Airplane Seats Could Let Travelers Fart Directly in Your Face*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride." ### Author social links [Bluesky]()