Chicago-Switzerland flight diverts to Portuguese island after odor sickens 6

A Swiss flight out of Chicago diverted over the Atlantic Ocean to Portugal’s Azores after a smell sickened six on board.

Swiss International Air Lines Flight LX9 left Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport at about 7:35 p.m. Monday, according to FlightAware. While the plane was about halfway over the ocean, a “pungent odor” started in the plane’s economy class section, the air carrier said in a release Tuesday.

As a precaution, the flight diverted to Lajes Airport on Terceira Island, 1,000 miles west of Lisbon, and landed at 6:30 a.m. local time Tuesday.

On the ground, five passengers and one crew member who suffered from nausea, headaches and eye irritation received medical examinations before being released, the airline said. The plane had 222 passengers and 16 crew on board, including two pilots.

“At this time, we cannot say with certainty what caused the pungent odor in the Economy Class cabin. Our experts will thoroughly inspect the aircraft. We ask for your understanding that we will not speculate about possible causes until these investigations have been completed,” Swiss International Air Lines said in the release.

The air carrier is sending a second plane to pick up the stranded passengers and crew before reaching Zurich on Tuesday night.

Due to the need for the replacement plane, Swiss International Air Lines canceled a flight from Zurich to Chicago and a return leg. The airline is making alternative arrangements for the passengers who would have been on those two flights.