Delta Flight Diverted Over Odor in Cabin

A Delta flight was diverted to John F. Kennedy International Airport on Tuesday because of an odor in the cabin.

Delta Air Lines Flight 981 was traveling from Logan International Airport in Boston to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport when the odor was detected, NECN reported.

The flight was diverted "out of an abundance of caution due to an odor in the cabin," a Delta spokeswoman said, per NECN. "Safety is always Delta's number one priority and we apologize to our customers for the inconvenience."

Crew described the odor as "fumes in back of the plane," but the aircraft did not declare an emergency situation until after the decision was made to divert the flight to JFK, The Aviation Herald reported.

The Herald said 158 people were onboard the flight when it landed safely in New York. Delta said it rebooked passengers to other flights after landing. The airline did not comment on what caused the odor but that maintenance technicians evaluated the airplane and were making repairs, NECN reported.

Last week, JetBlue Airways reported two of its crew members became sick aboard a fight, and it was later determined that nail polish was the culprit for the odor, the International Business Times reported.

On Aug. 2, another JetBlue Airways flight traveling overnight from Daugherty Field in Long Beach, California, to Fort Lauderdale International Airport in Florida was diverted to Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City about 2 a.m. because of an unknown odor believed to be coming from the cockpit, KWTV reported.

In that incident, from 20 to 25 passengers were treated for breathing problems connected to the unknown odor on the place, Oklahoma City Fire officials told the television station. Eight ambulances were called to the airport where oxygen tanks were used to assist passengers, KWTV wrote.

Officials later determined that the odor originated from the back of the airplane instead of the cockpit and the cause was not determined at the time, the television station said.

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