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Home  >  News • United Airlines  >  Update: United Airlines 787-9 Diverts To Honolulu Due To Disruptive Passenger
NewsUnited Airlines

Update: United Airlines 787-9 Diverts To Honolulu Due To Disruptive Passenger

Matthew Klint Posted onJune 16, 2022June 16, 2022 25 Comments

6/16 UPDATE: Exclusive insight from a passenger onboard. This story has been updated.


A United Airlines flight traveling from Tokyo to Los Angeles diverted to Honolulu due to a disruptive passenger onboard. A passenger on that flight has provided insight to Live and Let’s Fly on what occurred onboard.

United Airlines Dreamliner Traveling From Tokyo To LA Diverts To Honolulu Due To Disruptive Passenger

The incident occurred on UA33 traveling from Tokyo (NRT) to Los Angeles (NRT) on June 14, 2022. Midway over the Pacific Ocean a passenger disturbance occurred, prompting a diversion to Honolulu (HNL).

A United spokesperson told Live and Let’s Fly:

United flight 33 from Tokyo Narita International Airport to Los Angeles International Airport diverted to Honolulu Daniel K. Inouye International Airport due to a disruptive passenger. Law enforcement officers met the aircraft at the gate, and customers deplaned normally. Our teams are making arrangements to get customers to their final destinations as quickly as possible. 

The reported threat onboard was Level 2 under International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) guidelines:

  • Level 1 — Disruptive behavior (verbal)
  • Level 2 — Physically abusive behavior
  • Level 3 — Life-threatening behavior (or display of a weapon)
  • Level 4 — Attempted or actual breach of the flight crew compartment

From what we’ve been able to gather, there was not an overall threat to the aircraft. Rather, it was an isolated incident with one customer.

A passenger onboard shared with Live and Let’s Fly:

“I was on this flight sitting two rows in front of him on the other side of the plane. The passenger was irate and screaming he had to get off the plane. He was older and apparently he wasn’t drunk. He was being very forceful and at one point there was four people holding him down in his seat. They brought out zipties but ultimately they didn’t restrain him with the zipties. He walked off the plane with police and medical professionals.

“The woman sitting in front of me was a doctor who assisted in getting the passenger to calm down. She said there was a medication issue, either he didn’t take or mixed up meds.”

United’s Honolulu team met the flight and offered rebooking options to final destinations as well as hotel and meal vouchers for those who had to remain overnight in Honolulu. A replacement section for UA33 continued the journey to Los Angeles under the flight number UA3016 on June 15th and arrived at LAX in the late afternoon.

CONCLUSION

Here, it appears the diversion was caused by neither drunkenness nor a mask, but by medication. It took four people to restrain one passenger, though he appeared to calm down before the flight even reached its Honolulu diversion point.

Were you on UA33 on Tuesday? Please let us know what transpired onboard to require the diversion to HNL.


image: North Charleston

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About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

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25 Comments

  1. Batchcaloupe Reply
    June 15, 2022 at 2:50 pm

    Was there a scantily clade blonde lady with her butt cheeks hanging out from her DaisyDukes on steroids involved??

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      June 15, 2022 at 2:53 pm

      We’ll have to see!

  2. Gravelly Point Guy Reply
    June 15, 2022 at 3:28 pm

    BS. He was probably so pissed at the lack of food, beverage, good service and the absence of the grey SFA fleece in Polaris Business Class. I really don’t blame him, I feel his pain. Maybe he even got the KitKat chocolate bar as a dessert option . What a joke!!

  3. DC not in DC Reply
    June 15, 2022 at 4:53 pm

    Maybe the guy thought this was how United’s Excursionist Perk works?

  4. Larry B Reply
    June 15, 2022 at 6:09 pm

    The “primary culprit of in-flight disturbances” is no longer in force? When did ill-mannered, emotionally challenged passengers stop being a thing?

    Maybe the masks were “masking” the actual issue???

    • Billy Bob Reply
      June 15, 2022 at 7:19 pm

      The mask mandate was so bad that he must still be mad about them. /s

  5. derek Reply
    June 15, 2022 at 6:30 pm

    Taking photos is a level 3 violation? It’s not verbal (level 1) or physical (level 2) or entering the cockpit (level 4).

  6. koggerj Reply
    June 15, 2022 at 7:51 pm

    Probably a libtard.

    • Pondue Reply
      June 15, 2022 at 9:59 pm

      I am quite confident that right wing Americans are more likely than “hurr durr libtards” to be violent and disruptive on airliners but I guess when you have libtards on the brain and you’re permanently triggered you can’t help but lash out nonsensically.

    • Jim Reply
      June 16, 2022 at 12:03 am

      You need new writers mate.

  7. jm Reply
    June 15, 2022 at 8:35 pm

    The mask mandate is still in effect on some flights. United flights to and from Tokyo do have a mask mandate although I have no idea if that had anything to do with this incident.

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      June 15, 2022 at 8:53 pm

      The mask mandate is not enforced on United flights to the USA.

      • Tryg Reply
        June 15, 2022 at 9:32 pm

        I was on this flight sitting two rows in front of him on the other side of the plane. The passenger was irate and screaming he had to get off the plane. He was older and apparently he wasn’t drunk. He was being very forceful and at one point there was four people holding him down in his seat. They brought out zipties but ultimately they didn’t restrain him with the zipties. He walked off the plane with police and medical professionals.

        The woman sitting in front of me was a Dr who assisted in getting the passenger to calm down. She said there was a medication issue, either he didn’t take or mixed up meds.

        Worse places than Honolulu for a diversion though.

        • Matthew Klint Reply
          June 16, 2022 at 12:07 am

          I greatly appreciate this update!

      • Tryg Reply
        June 15, 2022 at 9:33 pm

        I was in this flight.

  8. Tony N Reply
    June 15, 2022 at 11:43 pm

    No matter how angry I would be, I would sit down and keep quiet as this causes total inconvenience to others and also the thousands of dollars you have to pay in fines if you decide to act out.

  9. lover of truth Reply
    June 16, 2022 at 6:32 am

    just a bit of constructional criticism:
    your blogs are very heavy, cold, curt etc.
    it seems like you are reviewing a morgue for BAG
    maybe it is bec of your german background
    but mainly your readers are in the us and probaly would more appreaciate
    the airy light friendly style found on tpg or view from the wing
    also changing the colors on your website would give a sad slum berlin feeling

    • LinBros88 Reply
      June 17, 2022 at 1:15 am

      U.S. based and prefer Matthew’s factual perspective vs VFTW’s often distorted opinions.

  10. Nick Reply
    June 16, 2022 at 10:57 am

    Why couldn’t they just zip tie him?

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      June 16, 2022 at 10:59 am

      It seems they chose not too. I’m waiting for further feedback from the passenger I quoted.

    • Proschwit Reply
      June 16, 2022 at 3:06 pm

      At the height of passenger disruptions when the mask mandate was in effect and there were several airlines zip tying and even duck taping passengers to their seats, United issued a memo advising flight attendants not use duck tape or zip ties. I think United’s thinking was there could be liability issues if there were to be an emergency onboard an aircraft that required an emergency evacuation the passenger then could not self evacuate.

      What I find unusual is liveandletsfly.com issued an update to this story not because they receive any official word from United Airlines, but from a blogger who posted their comment in the comment section. Basically liveandletsfly.com has taken “a passenger” statement in the comment section as truth despite not having or sharing any real evidence to corroborate this persons story. There is no video of the incident, nothing yet from United Airlines and nothing from any other passenger who was onboard the flight to backup what this person posted.

      • Tonya Miller Reply
        June 18, 2022 at 3:38 pm

        Exactly what I’m noting as I read searching for information given this is the second flight on same day involving a flight issue and Honolulu. The other flight was first reported as cockpit breach attempt, then that was updated by our local news only to remove cockpit breach attempt. I want to know what occurred in detail with each flight and I don’t like how sketchy getting details seems to be. Is there a coverup of attempted attack? False flag attempt thwarted? Coincidence with these two flights? And yeah, I can’t rely on a random commenter who can write anything, although official narratives often are riddled with different account from witnesses so …,who knows the truth ?

        • Matthew Klint Reply
          June 18, 2022 at 3:46 pm

          I spoke to the passenger before publishing the account. Proschwitz just likes to whine. The passenger seemed to have a medical episode. There was no attempted cockpit breach, which I’ve confirmed directly with United. You won’t find a better source than this story…sorry it isn’t detailed enough for you, but there is no cover-up or “false flag” event.

  11. Dave Edwards Reply
    June 16, 2022 at 11:56 am

    And I figured UA-NYC passed on.

  12. Annie Thompson Reply
    June 17, 2022 at 1:37 am

    I am one of the passenger in this plane. I am watching a movie when it happened. I’m nit using a headset too. The man was sitting 1 row behind us. After dinner, when they turned off the light on the plane, that’s the time I heard a lady, turning heyback from where i sit, that kept on screaming, “stop it “! She kept on screaming those words! I thought she’s the wife of that man… come to found out, she’s one of the crew. The guy seems normal…we saw him before checking in..I just thought that maybe he’s dreaming when he thought he’s on a train and would like to get up.. one middle size old man surrounded by many heavy set people??? I can’t understand that! He seems to be treated so cruel, deprived of his dignity and respect and was physically abused physically, emotionally and mentally. I pitied him a lot.

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