Cruise Passengers Get Sick on Texas-Bound Flight After Sailing

Over two dozen passengers who were part of a cruise began showing flu-like symptoms and nausea during a United Airlines flight.

United Airlines Flight 1528 was traveling from Vancouver to Houston on Friday when dozens of guests began vomiting on the plane. The Boeing 737 carried 163 passengers, 75 of whom came from a recently concluded cruise. Among the previous cruise passengers, 25 to 30 manifested flu-like symptoms.

As they descended into the Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston at 6:20 p.m., emergency responders were on the ground to assess the passengers and the situation. Upon arrival, the plane was taken out of service for deep cleaning, and three flights were canceled.

USA Today shared the following report from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), “Public health officers from CDC’s Houston Port Health Station worked with EMS to evaluate ill passengers on board. Most of the ill passengers reported mild GI symptoms… No passengers met CDC criteria for further public health follow-up. Passengers from the flight continued with their travel plans.”

Meanwhile, the airline pointed out several affected travelers came from the same cruise.

Following the incident, United Airlines sent the plane for cleaning and disinfection. “United Airlines is actively coordinating with health authorities to address the situation. As a precautionary measure, the aircraft will be removed from service and go through a deep cleaning before returning to service. Ensuring the health and safety of our passengers and crew remains our top priority,” it shared in a statement.

The airline’s precautionary measures led to three flights being canceled. However, we have no confirmation if the illness was norovirus or which cruise the sick travelers came from.

Many believe that Royal Caribbean International’s Radiance of the Seas could be where they originated. This is because it was the only vessel that docked in Vancouver on the day of the flight.

The same ship had a confirmed norovirus outbreak from April 8 to 22. On May 23, guests aboard the 2001-built vessel noticed some had fallen ill, and sanitation measures became more pronounced.