A DISASTROUS flight from a popular tourist spot saw passengers forced to improvise after all the plane’s toilets malfunctioned.
One elderly flyer even had to endure the “humiliation” of wetting herself mid-air because of the lavatory fault.
GettyThe unpleasant ordeal unfolded on a six-hour Virgin flight between Bali and Brisbane[/caption]
HandoutThe undignified ordeal left passengers forced to urinate in bottles[/caption]
HandoutFor the final three hours of the flight, everyone on board had to improvise[/caption]
The unpleasant ordeal unfolded on a six-hour Virgin flight between Bali and Brisbane on Thursday afternoon.
Ahead of takeoff out of Denpasar, one of the Boeing 737 MAX 8’s rear toilets was already out of order.
However, the service was not delayed or cancelled due to lack of engineering support in Bali.
But this was just the start of the drama, as the two remaining toilets on the plane both broke down half way to Brisbane, leaving those on board without anywhere to relieve themselves.
The undignified incident left passengers forced to urinate in bottles if they couldn’t hold on until arrival in Queensland.
One passenger told The Australian: “One elderly woman was unable to hold on and suffered the humiliation of wetting herself in public.
“Midway through the flight, every toilet failed.”
It meant that for the final three hours of the flight, everyone on board had to improvise.
The passenger added: “The cabin crew informed us we would need to relieve ourselves in bottles or ‘on top of whatever was already in the toilet’.”
They said an awful smell clung onto the air inside the plane and as urine seeped into the cabin floor.
Virgin Australia has apologised to passengers for the unfortunate incident.
An airline spokesperson told news.com.au: “A Virgin Australia flight from Denpasar to Brisbane on Thursday evening experienced an issue during the flight which affected the serviceability of the lavatories.
“We sincerely apologise to our guests and thank our crew for managing a challenging situation on board.”
Virgin added that passengers would be credited for the flight – and would be contacted directly with any updates.
The Sun has also contacted Virgin Australia for comment.
The Australian Transport Workers Union (TWU) told news.com.au that its representatives have reached out to Virgin following the events.
The union called it a “distressing event, which constitutes a severe hazard both for crew and passengers”.
TWU national assistant secretary Emily McMillan said: “Across the board, aviation workers are dealing with increasing risks to their health and safety at work, with an industry-wide trend towards profits over performance.
“We need to see decisions made in the interest of public and workers, not just prioritise getting planes out to maximise profits at the expense of the community.”
Just a few days ago, a Boeing 737 had to make an emergency landing after one of its tyres exploded.
The Norwegian flight had just taken off from Stockholm and was due to head to Paris.
But a loud bang was heard and it was forced to circle the airport before making an emergency landing back in Sweden’s capital.
Debris from the explosion was reportedly found on the runway.
And back in 2013, a Carnival Triumph cruise ship drew international media attention following a voyage that would go on to be dubbed the “poop cruise”.
Its air conditioning, refrigeration and sewage and sanitation systems all failed after a fire knocked out the ship’s main power supply.
This led to a horrifying spectacle where the toilets stopped working and raw sewage seeped into hallways and cabins.
GettyThe airline said passengers would be credited for the flight[/caption]