Alaska Airlines says four of its crew members were taken to the hospital Wednesday night after a flight bound for Seattle was diverted to Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport due to a “cabin odor.”
Medical teams at the airport also evaluated two other crew members and two passengers.
People on the flight from Chicago were having trouble breathing, according to Metropolitan Airports Commission Spokesperson Pat Hogan.
“The flight attendants were pretty concerned. They all sorta went to the front of the plane to huddle together and I think they talked to the pilots to figure it out. So it was pretty obvious within a few minutes that something was up,” one of the passengers told KARE 11, KING 5’s sister station in Minneapolis.
The Boeing 737 had 144 passengers on board and six crew members.
“The cause of the odor is being investigated and the plane has been removed from service pending an inspection," according to an Alaska Airlines news release.
Passengers will be rebooked to different flights to Seattle.
You can read the full statement from Alaska Airlines below:
"Alaska Airlines Flight 51 departed Chicago O’Hare for Seattle at 5:48 p.m. local time. During the flight, the crew reported a cabin odor. As a precaution, the aircraft diverted to Minneapolis-St Paul International landing at 7:17 p.m. local time.
Six crewmembers received a medical evaluation at the airport and four were transported to the hospital for further evaluation. Two passengers were also evaluated at the airport. The cause of the odor is being investigated and the plane has been removed from service pending an inspection.
The flight has canceled and passengers will be rebooked on a different flight to Seattle."
On Tuesday, an Alaska Airlines flight departing from Seattle bound for Orange County had to be diverted due to an odor in the cabin. Three crew members from the plane were taken to a hospital for a precautionary evaluation.