Delta passengers left stranded for 12 hours on Portuguese island after flight from Ghana to New York was diverted were warned ‘not to start a revolution’ and told to be ‘grateful the plane didn’t crash’
- More than 200 people were stranded on the Terceria Islands on Friday
- They had been traveling from Ghana to New York when the plane had difficulties
- Delta stated that there had been a ‘mechanical issue’ with the ‘oxygen system’
Passengers on board a Delta flight from Ghana to New York were diverted after issues with the oxygen supply on the flight.
The plane was carrying more than 200 people when customers say they were left ‘begging for food’ and told by reps ‘not to start a revolution’, while at Lajes Airport, in Portugal.
One complained that they were stuck in a secluded part of the airport for 12 hours, and were told they should be ‘grateful the plane didn’t crash in the sea.’
Nana Asante-Smith said that she and others on the plane on Friday were told to drink water from the bathroom faucets.
‘We were abandoned by Delta and treated like encroaching roaches by airport representatives on Terceira Islands, they had a reckless disregard for human life and well-being’ she said.
One passenger complained that they were stuck in a secluded part of the airport for 12 hours, and were told they should be ‘grateful the plane didn’t crash in the sea’
Passengers got off the flight in Terceria and were taken to a ‘partitioned section’ of the airport at around 6am, because Ghanaian citizens did not have the correct visas to enter Portugal.
Asante-Smith claims that staff were transported to a hotel, and passengers were told to contact Delta from the airport.
They were initially informed that they would be given a meal and a plane would arrive from Boston to take them to their final destination.
Instead passengers were forced to beg for ham sandwiches, juice boxes and crackers hours later after the food did not materialize.
‘It is interesting, because anyone who is intimately familiar with West Africa or our Muslim brothers and sisters know that many people have dietary restrictions with eating pork,’ Asante-Smith told Insider.
She added that a lot of the passengers were left confused by the airport reps, with one woman telling them ‘not to start a revolution’.
A second passenger, Kiaundra Smith, claimed that the same woman said that they should be ‘grateful that they allowed us to be there and that our plane didn’t crash in the sea’.
Smith added that the word ‘revolution’ was ‘incendiary’, and posted footage saying she ‘shouldn’t have used that word’.
Nana Asante-Smith said that she and others on the plane on Friday were told to drink water from the bathroom faucets and begged for food
Customers were provided with refund for Flight 157, with the spokesman adding that the emergency landing was due to a ‘mechanical issue with a backup oxygen system’
Asante-Smith claims that staff were transported to a hotel, and passengers were told to contact Delta from the airport
Initially passengers were told that the plane was diverted because of a mechanical issue, and then that someone was ‘very ill on the plane’.
While they waited for a plane to arrive to take them to New York, Asante-Smith said some people, ‘the elderly, pregnant women, children, became restless, frustrated and confused.’
They say that they were transported to JFK without their luggage after 12 hours in the airport, which they say left them ‘physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted’.
Asante-Smith was given a $400 voucher by the airline, and received an email stating she would be given a full refund for the trip, but has yet to be given it.
In a statement to Business Insider, a Delta spokesperson said the 215 passengers were given meals and waited for nearly 12 hours for another aircraft to arrive from Lisbon.
Initially passengers were told that the plane was diverted because of a mechanical issue, and then that someone was ‘very ill on the plane’
They say that they were transported to JFK without their luggage after 12 hours in the airport, which they say left them ‘physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted’
They added that passengers’ bags were sent on their original aircraft to JFK, as the second plane only had a one hour landing time in Terceira. Passengers say they had not received their luggage as of Monday.
Customers were provided with refund for Flight 157, with the spokesman adding that the emergency landing was due to a ‘mechanical issue with a backup oxygen system.’
The oxygen in the cabin and cockpit were not affected, but the plane landed in Terceira out of ‘an abundance of caution,’ the spokesperson added.
Ghanaian rapper Sakordie said that he was on the flight, and missed performing at an event in Detroit because of the diversion, calling the incident ‘unfortunate’.
He added: ‘I know these things happen so I wasn’t trippin’ even though they communicated poorly and didn’t have the courtesy to update us on exactly what was happening.
‘This isn’t new with this airline, especially from this part of the world (Africa), they keep sending these weak old flights (business class almost same as economy) to pick us up knowing very well they are not safe, but still risk lives.’
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