United Airlines: Over 200 Dublin-bound passengers forced to spend weekend in Canada after plane diverted

Sign up to Simon Calder’s free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calder’s Travel email Get Simon Calder’s Travel email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy More than 200 passengers and crew were forced to spend an impromptu weekend in freezing temperatures on a Canadian island after a United Airlines flight travelling from New York to Ireland was unexpectedly diverted. United Flight 23 departed Newark Liberty Airport on Thursday 13 February just after 8pm, but around three hours into the six-hour flight, the plane made a wide U-turn and diverted its course to St. John’s International Airport in Canada’s Newfoundland and Labrador province. The flight was diverted after a medical emergency, but high winds kept passengers in Canada The Boeing 777 was initially unable to to complete its journey to Dublin due to high winds in the area, United said. The United flyer added that there were multiple elderly passengers and children that had no access to their luggage, and claimed that the local airport helped them more than United, as the airline did not have staff on-site to deal with the situation St. John's is a small airport that doesn't typically handle large Boeing flights, CBS reported, with United Airlines also not having many resources there.