Flight forced to divert to Dublin over “chemical spill”

New York, March 16, 2017: An American Airlines jet late in the day at gate 14 Terminal 8 at JFK.

An American Airlines flight was forced to divert following reports of a “chemical spill” on board on Monday.

The airline told Travel Weekly in a statement that flight 729 from London, Heathrow to Philadelphia was diverted to Dublin “due to an odour caused by a spilled cleaning solution in the galley”.

A passenger on the flight posted to Twitter saying the spill led to a “sickness outbreak and an emergency landing”.

The airline confirmed that medical personnel met the aircraft and two crew members and one passenger were taken to hospital for evaluation but have all since been released.

The BBC reported an audio clip has surfaced online revealing an alleged recording of a conversation between the pilot and an air traffic controller. In the recording, the pilot can be heard stating that two cabin staff had “Actually lost consciousness” after being exposed to the chemical.

However, the Irish Aviation Authority told the BBC it does not release such recordings and was “not in a position to authenticate it”.

According to the airline, the flight landed safely in Dublin at 1:15pm local time and taxied to the gate.

An American Airlines spokesperson told the BBC the flight had been rescheduled to leave Dublin on Tuesday morning with passengers offered a free hotel room for the night.

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