Double Diversion Drama: United Airlines Makes Two Unexpected Stopovers in Charlotte and Orlando

Double Diversion Drama: United Airlines Makes Two Unexpected Stopovers in Charlotte and Orlando

by Gary Leff July 8, 2024

United Airlines offers a daily nonstop flight from Chicago to San Juan, with a second flight on Saturdays. It’s a four-and-a-half-hour flight on a Boeing 737 MAX 9 that departs a little before 9 a.m. and arrives a little before 3 p.m. But on Fridays, the flight got a little more… complicated.

When the passengers on United Airlines Flight 1996 first landed, they weren’t in Puerto Rico, but in Charlotte. One of the passengers on board had a medical emergency, and the airline landed as quickly as possible. Everyone waited on board while the situation was resolved, and then they took off again…for Orlando.

United said it was foreseen and the double diversion was necessary to pick up a new crew, so that the original crew would not be overrun. So everyone had to land a second time en route to San Juan.

According to an airline spokesperson,

On Friday, July 5, United Airlines Flight 1996 from Chicago to San Juan was diverted to Charlotte to address a passenger medical issue. The flight then stopped in Orlando where a new crew was available to replace the current crew, who had worked the maximum number of hours allowed by the FAA. The flight then continued to San Juan that evening.

Boeing 737 MAX 9, credit: United

The passengers finally arrived in Puerto Rico more than five hours late.

I suspect the new crew may have been needed to operate the return flight, rather than continuing the current flight. United Flight 2088 back to Chicago was delayed a total of six hours and 18 minutes.

The flight was not canceled, meaning passengers leaving Puerto Rico were not stranded. That was good planning, even if their flight was delayed longer due to the second diversion. United likely would not have had extra crew in San Juan.

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