On Saturday 22 March, a United Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Shanghai had to make a U-turn after two hours in the air. One of the pilots on board realised to have forgotten their passport.
United Airlines flight UA198 was heading from Los Angeles International Airport to Shanghai with 257 passengers aboard. The plane took off at 2 pm on Saturday 22 March and would have landed in China after a 13-and-a-half-hour flight. However, according to data by FlightRadar24, the Boeing 787-9 made a U-turn after just two hours in the air and landed in San Francisco around 5 pm.
During the incident, passengers of the UA198 flight got the following message from the airline.
“UA198 SFO-PVG: Your flight diverted to San Francisco due to an unexpected crew-related issue requiring a new crew. Once they arrive, we’ll get you back on your way to Shanghai as soon as possible. We sincerely apologize for this disruption and appreciate your patience.”
Once landed in San Francisco, all passengers received a $15 meal voucher in order to be able to eat something while waiting. United also said all passengers had a right to compensation.
A United Airlines plane made a U-turn two hours into the flight, after the pilot realized they forgot their passport
— Dexerto (@Dexerto) March 24, 2025
The 257 passengers were given a $15 coupon pic.twitter.com/geFv0aYNBQ
A forgotten passport caught two hours late
While United Airlines remained somewhat vague about the reason for the turnaround in their message, according to the passengers aboard, one of the pilots on the flight forgot their passport and only realised this when the plane had already been in the air for two hours.
“UA198 diverted to SFO because the pilot forgot his passport? Now stuck six plus hours. Completely unacceptable. United, what compensation are you offering for this total mishandling?”, passenger Paramjot Singh Kalra wrote on X.
Eventually, a United flight took off from San Francisco at 9 pm that evening and landed in Shanghai at 1 am local time.
In a statement to The Independent, a United Airlines spokesperson went further into detail.
“On Saturday, United flight 198 from Los Angeles to Shanghai landed at San Francisco International Airport as the pilot did not have their passport onboard. We arranged for a new crew to take our customers to their destination that evening. Customers were provided with meal vouchers and compensation”, they explained.
United Airlines flight #UA198, which was flying from Los Angeles to Shanghai, turned around over the Pacific and diverted to San Francisco after a pilot realized they forgot their passport.
— AirNav Radar (@AirNavRadar) March 24, 2025
The aircraft climbed to 32,000ft and flew for about 1 hour and 45 minutes when the crew… pic.twitter.com/ZGJB2ktn2U
Pilots and their passport problems
While packing their passport seems like something every pilot should think about, it is not the first time a pilot has forgotten theirs and delayed a flight. In 2019, a T’way Air flight from Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam to Incheon in South Korea took off 11 hours late because the pilot lost his passport.
Just a week prior to the UA198 flight, another United Airlines plane to Shanghai was delayed by several hours because a pilot had forgotten their passport. However, this time, the plane hadn’t left yet and passengers had to wait for a new pilot to arrive before being able to take off.
