British Airways Relocates Hyderabad Crew Hotel After Multiple Pilot Food Poisoning Cases
British Airways is moving crew out of its layover hotel in the Indian city of Hyderabad after all three pilots of a return flight to London Heathrow suffered violent food poisoning at 35,000 feet, with one pilot becoming so sick that he became “incapacitated” and had to be put on oxygen. The recent incident occurred on British Airways flight BA-276, which is operated by one of the airline’s Boeing 777 workhorses. The flight normally takes 10 hours and requires three pilots so that they can take a rest in special crew rest facilities one at a time. During this particular flight, however, all three pilots started to report classic symptoms of food poisoning. Thankfully, while one was declared incapacitated, the other two pilots were able to safely continue to fly the plane to London, although their condition reportedly deteriorated shortly after arrival. Suspicion as to the cause of the food poisoning wasn’t something they had eaten on the plane, but rather the buffet in the executive lounge of the hotel in Hyderabad, where British Airways puts its crew up for layovers in the city. Initial reports claimed that the pilots had been asked to provide ‘samples’ to enable investigators to determine the cause of their sickness. While the results of those tests haven’t been revealed, this wasn’t the first time that BA’s pilots and cabin crew had allegedly reported food poisoning symptoms after staying at this particular layover hotel. Despite a slew of reports, British Airways had reportedly failed to take action. Following the now viral story of these three pilots, however, we have now learned that immediate steps have been taken by the airline to prevent any further recurrence. British Airways has moved swiftly to move pilots and cabin crew out of the hotel where the alleged food poisoning incidents took place, with the airline now buying up rooms at a luxury Five Star hotel in the heart of Hyderabad’s commercial district. In a statement, a spokesperson for the airline said "the welfare of our colleagues is a top priority, and we are reviewing crew accommodation in this location following some isolated reports of sickness." Despite the fact that one of the pilots was incapacitated, and the other two reported feeling ill during the flight, British Airways insisted that safety was never compromised.