Okay, so this is basically everyone’s worst nightmare on a plane. Yesterday, August 28, passengers flying Virgin Australia from Bali to Brisbane were told they had to use bottles after every single toilet stopped working mid-flight.
The flight, VA50, left Denpasar International Airport with one of the rear toilets already out of service, according to 7News. With limited engineering support at the airport, the plane still departed with just two functioning bathrooms for what was meant to be a six-hour journey. Chaotic, but manageable.
Shortly after takeoff, another toilet broke down, leaving passengers lining up for around 40 minutes to use the last one at the front of the aircraft.
‘Beyond unacceptable’: Toilets overflow mid-flight
Midway through the flight, the final toilet stopped working too. For the remaining three hours, crew reportedly told passengers they would need to relieve themselves in bottles or “on top of whatever was already in the toilet.”
One man told The Australian the situation was “beyond unacceptable,” adding, “One elderly woman was unable to hold on and suffered the humiliation of wetting herself in public.”
He described the distress on board, “Children were crying, elderly passengers distressed, and many travellers visibly upset at the lack of dignity and sanitation.”
According to him, when he refused to use a bottle, cabin crew suggested he could use the sink in the business-class galley instead. “This is a huge hygiene issue as people wash their hands in the sink,” he said.
Another passenger, Aaron, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that toilets “quickly clogged and overflowed with human waste, urine, and used toilet paper. The stench spread through the aircraft, seeping onto the floor.”
via Canva
Virgin Australia released a statement
Virgin Australia confirmed the incident in a statement obtained by PEOPLE, “A flight from Denpasar to Brisbane on Thursday evening experienced an issue during the flight which affected the serviceability of the lavatories.”
The airline apologised to passengers and praised the crew for managing “a challenging situation on board.” It also said all toilets were out of service for the final one hour and 40 minutes of the flight and that the cause of the problem is now under investigation.
Virgin Australia added, “We sincerely apologise to our guests and thank our crew for managing a challenging situation on board. We will be crediting guests for the Denpasar to Brisbane flight and we are proactively reaching out to them to provide this update.”
The Transport Workers’ Union (TWU) has since described the incident as a “severe hazard” for both passengers and staff. National Assistant Secretary Emily McMillan told the ABC, “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.”
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