Hong Kong Flu-ey - Sick pax held on CO 98 from HKG

[Nonstop2AUH]

Hope this isn't the return of SARS, bird flu, etc...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17802195/

[tsnamm]

according to WCBS it was met by the CDC...the flight crew called ahead because so many people were sick...but they say nothing incurable...

[USAF Pilot 07]

Probably just a bad case of airline food!

[njgtr82]

Well before they even landed they at first said don't bring them to a gate, before finally they(someone in Houston) got the ok from the CDC to let the passengers off. Then I guess the port authority was notified and they wanted some extra steps to be taken, such as paramedics to be there when they deplaned.

[hiss srq]

Moral of the story- Don't eat the fish!

[Nonstop2AUH]

Update here:

http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/03/26/sick.airliner/

Apparently the group that was ill had been on a river cruise in China, so can't blame this one on airline food, but cruise ship food. Anyway they got the ok to continue on to final destination of Montreal, so luckily not as bad as seemed at first.

My best friend (last old time NY friend I had to hang out with, some of you will know what I am talkin' about) moved to HK last year and this is the flt he takes home so I was especially worried if it was connected to either HKG or the flight itself...

[Mateo]

Number one super guy. Great headline!

[emshighway]

Guess they were disorientated!!!! :shock:

[nwafan20]

What was it we had for dinner tonight?
Well, we had a choice of steak or fish.
Yes, yes, I remember, I had lasagna.

[Nonstop2AUH]

Glad someone appreciated the headline. Seriously, I wonder with the proliferation of ultra longhaul flights if there is a greater risk of viruses spreading onboard. I'm not a doctor (and don't play one on TV), but I got some nasty viral bronchitis a couple of years ago and my doc said you can pick it up anywhere you're in close proximity to alot of other people and their germs for long enough to pick them up. He cited as an example of this being on the subway, and his advice (this was summer of '04) was to "stay away from the protesters" that were in Manhattan for the RNC. I'm glad this CO thing turned out not to be a big deal (and didn't originate onboard), but I wonder if someday it could be a bit worse. Anyone else here ever notice that in Asia, some travelers wear masks?

[Ari707]

on my flight last week to paris there was a pa wearing a mask

[T-Bird76]

on my flight last week to paris there was a pa wearing a mask

I've seen that allot lately, looks a bit silly but probably a smart thing to do.

[Matt Molnar]

Coughing Girl Ordered Off Flight (http://www.local6.com/news/11419162/detail.html)
Kalani High School Group On Spring Break Trip
POSTED: 9:44 am EDT March 28, 2007
UPDATED: 9:56 am EDT March 28, 2007

A 16-year-old girl from Hawaii was ordered off a Continental Airlines flight after she began uncontrollably coughing in her seat, according to her family and classmates.

Kalani High School student Rachel Collier was returning to Honolulu from a spring break trip to New York and Washington when she began to cough in her airplane seat.

"I was behind her she started coughing like I heard she couldn't breathe and it felt like something was in the back of her throat," classmate Avya Tawfir said.

The girl's family said the pilot ordered the girl off the flight because she was ill.

"Upon boarding the plane (she) was asked to leave by the pilot because she had a little bit of a coughing spell," mother Stephanie Collier told KITV-TV in Hawaii. "I'm frustrated. I'm really, really frustrated. Why they would do that, especially with two teachers escorting 40 children across the United States, and for the pilot to make that kind of decision."

Collier's father, Randy, was angered over the fact that his daughter was left behind.

"When you get a call at 8:30 in the morning saying from a crying daughter you kind of get a little freaked out what's going on," he said.

Collier's classmates said several of the students on the trip had been sick and a few had gone to the hospital.

Earlier, 272 passengers were ill and there were concerns about the bird flu, but health officials said the victims on the plane were suffering from a seasonal flu.

Rachel Collier and her teacher are scheduled to return to Hawaii Wednesday night.

[RDU-JFK]

Why they would do that, especially with two teachers escorting 40 children across the United States, and for the pilot to make that kind of decision

They would do that because:
1. The pilot was concerned about possibe spread of germs
2. If there was another coughing fit while in the air which got worse it's a lot easier to treat said condition on the ground.

Reminds me of that JetBlue woman who sued when she was pulled off board for asking for a large barf bag.

People need to understand that the safety and health of yourself and others comes first--before one person getting to their destination.

[Nonstop2AUH]

Does anyone know if airlines have any policy about the wearing of masks, either by crew or by passengers?

Actually my cousin and his wife are doctors and they and their children apparently wear them when they fly to Asia, where her family is from. This practice always sounded a bit extreme to me, but after all these stories maybe they aren't overreacting, I am going to stop making fun of them for it...