An American Airlines flight was reportedly delayed for hours over a Wi-Fi hotspot that used the word “Bomb.”
According to ABC News, American Airlines Flight 2863, which was scheduled to fly from Austin, Texas to Charlotte, North Carolina last Friday, was delayed for four hours due to suspicious activity “regarding the name of a Wi-Fi hotspot involving the word “bomb.” When speaking to the network, 63-year-old Bruce Steen, who was aboard the flight at the time of the incident, said that an attendant was approached by a young man with a tablet to show her something on the screen. Steen told ABC that the attendant immediately contacted the cockpit and the pilot announced that the aircraft would be returning to the gate due to an “administrative issue.”
The incident was reported to the Austin Police Department, as well as the Department of Aviation before the pilot informed passengers that “somebody renamed their hotspot.” Steen told ABC that the pilot said he was told by the crew that the hotspot was named “There is a bomb on the flight.”
According to the network, a lieutenant with the Austin Police Department boarded the plane and told the passengers, “If this is a joke, please raise your hand now, because we can deal with the practical joke differently than if this, if we have to do a full blown investigation of what’s going on here.”
Steen explained to reporters with ABC that none of the passengers raised their hands, and everyone onboard was removed from the aircraft in groups by police. He told the network that each passenger was required to show their hotspot to authorities.