Woman fakes labour to force plane to make emergency landing in Spain

Some 28 people fled from a commercial plane after an emergency landing in Spain following claims by a pregnant woman that she was in labour. The flight from Morocco to Turkey landed in Barcelona where some passengers, believed to be migrants, ran from the plane. Thirteen were stopped by the police, two are in detention while the rest are on the run.

False alarm

The crew on Turkey’s Pegasus Airlines had to make an emergency landing at El Prat airport in Barcelona in response to the woman’s cry for help. According to the government, the female passenger was examined by medics once the plane landed and was found to be pregnant alright, but she had not gone into labour.

28 out of the 228 passengers on the Turkey-bound flight exited the plane without authorization, the moment it landed, officials said. The communication from the Spanish government added that five were put back on the plane and eight others would be deported to Morocco. The nationalities of the migrants have not been disclosed.

Nothing new

This is not the first time something like this has happened. About a year or two ago, a group of passengers flying from Casablanca to Istanbul fled their plane on to the runway on the Spanish island of Mallorca following an emergency landing under a false pretext. 24 people in total fled the plane, 12 were arrested and 12 escaped.

In this recent case, the woman who was thought to be in labour has been detained on charges of public disorder

Sources used:

Euro News: Dozens try to flee after woman 'fakes labour' to get plane to make emergency landing in Spain

Sky News: Spain: Search for 14 people who ran from plane after emergency landing forced by woman 'faking' she was about to give birth