Oh crap! Airline cancels flight after passenger pooped on plane's floor

When you gotta go, you gotta go.

That's likely what happened to a passenger on a flight from Spain who was stuck in a hours-long delay with no end in sight.

EasyJet flight EZY8054 was scheduled to leave the Spanish Island of Tenerife for London Gatwick on Sunday (Oct 15) but had to be cancelled after a 'defecation' incident, CNN reported on Tuesday.

Speaking with CNN, passenger Aaran Gedhu shared that the flight had already experienced delays before the incident occurred, stemming from a swap to a smaller plane.

Not only were some travellers prevented from boarding, but those who boarded the plane also had to wait for luggage to be offloaded due to problems with aircraft weight.

Although passengers were offered a £500 (S$831) voucher to leave the flight, none of them took up the deal, UK media reported.

"EasyJet planes, as they are, just aren't very comfortable - it's just a basic seat with okay-ish legroom, so everyone was just a bit tense," Gedhu told CNN.

Things started looking up about 20 minutes before departure, but "that's when the incident happened with the defecation," he said.

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He recalled seeing two passengers headed towards the toilet located at the front of the aircraft and later received word that someone had gone for a 'number two' on the lavatory floor.

Soon after, passengers were assailed by a terrible smell.

"Everyone was being polite to each other. There was no fighting among the passengers," Gedhu said, explaining that those on board felt it might have been an "accident".

"It was just a very uncomfortable experience. Obviously, the plane was in an unsanitary state. So they had to get external cleaners out from the airport to clean it."

Although passengers remained on the plane while cleaning was conducted, the captain soon instructed everyone on board to leave the aircraft.

Passengers then scrambled to find accommodation for themselves after being told that the airline had been unable to find rooms in the area, The Sun reported.

The disembarkation of passengers took another half an hour, Gedhu said.

In a statement to the media, EasyJet stated: "The flight was delayed overnight due to the aircraft requiring additional cleaning. We provided hotel accommodation for all customers.

"However, as there was limited nearby hotel availability in the area, we also advised any customers who booked their own that they will be reimbursed."

EasyJet also stressed that the "safety and wellbeing" of customers and crew is their "highest priority", and apologised for the inconvenience caused by this incident that was "outside of their control".

Gedhu and other passengers were rebooked for a flight at 3pm on Monday, the Daily Mail reported.

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khooyihang@asiaone.com