A US pilot sparked a hijacking alert after spilling his coffee on the controls, issuing a distress signal and forcing the plane to divert.
The United Airlines flight from Chicago to Frankfurt, Germany, was forced to make an unscheduled stop in Canada, reports the Daily Telegraph.
The flight landed safely in Toronto after the coffee spill caused distress signals to go out, including code 7500, which means hijacking or unlawful interference.
A report on Transport Canada's website said the pilot "had inadvertently squawked a 7500 code after spilling coffee on the aircraft's radio equipment, which interfered with the communications equipment".
"The flight crew had advised that they had communication problems and subsequently reported that they had some navigation problems as well and from there the pilot in the command diverted the flight onto Toronto," said Maryse Durette, a Transport Canada spokeswoman.
United spokesman Rahsaan Johnson said: "It was a beverage. During light turbulence one of the crew members beverages spilt which then caused issues with the aeroplanes communications equipment."
Mr Johnson said the crew was in contact with air traffic control throughout. He said that the pilot elected to divert the flight rather than cross the Atlantic Ocean while experiencing a communications problem.
The Boeing 777 was carrying 241 passengers and 14 crew members. They were flown back to Chicago on another plane and put up in hotel rooms overnight before catching a later flight to Frankfurt.
Source: http://web.orange.co.uk/article/quirkies/Coffee_spill_sparks_hijack_alert
The United Airlines flight from Chicago to Frankfurt, Germany, was forced to make an unscheduled stop in Canada, reports the Daily Telegraph.
The flight landed safely in Toronto after the coffee spill caused distress signals to go out, including code 7500, which means hijacking or unlawful interference.
A report on Transport Canada's website said the pilot "had inadvertently squawked a 7500 code after spilling coffee on the aircraft's radio equipment, which interfered with the communications equipment".
"The flight crew had advised that they had communication problems and subsequently reported that they had some navigation problems as well and from there the pilot in the command diverted the flight onto Toronto," said Maryse Durette, a Transport Canada spokeswoman.
United spokesman Rahsaan Johnson said: "It was a beverage. During light turbulence one of the crew members beverages spilt which then caused issues with the aeroplanes communications equipment."
Mr Johnson said the crew was in contact with air traffic control throughout. He said that the pilot elected to divert the flight rather than cross the Atlantic Ocean while experiencing a communications problem.
The Boeing 777 was carrying 241 passengers and 14 crew members. They were flown back to Chicago on another plane and put up in hotel rooms overnight before catching a later flight to Frankfurt.
Source: http://web.orange.co.uk/article/quirkies/Coffee_spill_sparks_hijack_alert
