A United Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Shanghai was forced to make an unexpected diversion on Saturday after one of the pilots realized mid-flight that he had forgotten his passport.
The flight, operated with a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, departed Los Angeles International Airport at 2:01 PM local time and initially followed its planned route westward over the Pacific Ocean. Nearly two hours into the journey, one of the four pilots onboard discovered he did not have his passport with him. A passenger later shared the unusual incident on Reddit.
Since the pilot could not legally enter China without a passport, United Airlines made the decision to reroute the flight. The Dreamliner turned back and diverted to San Francisco International Airport, where it landed at 4:54 PM local time. The diversion brought the aircraft back to the ground just under three hours after departure.
Passengers faced a significant delay due to the unexpected stop. United Airlines issued $15 meal vouchers and arranged for a replacement crew to take over the remainder of the flight. After several hours on the ground in San Francisco, the Boeing 787-9 took off once again at 9:01 PM—this time without further incident.
The flight ultimately arrived in Shanghai with a delay of six hours.
