Woman accused of faking labor so flight has to make emergency landing

A woman was detained after being accused of faking labor so the flight she was on had to make an emergency landing.

Spanish authorities are currently investigating the incident after the Pegasus Airlines plane travelling from Casablanca in Morocco to Turkey's Istanbul stopped at the El Prat Airport in Barcelona.

After the plane made its landing, the delegation for Spain's government in Catalonia said that at least 27 people left the aircraft without authorization and 'tried to flee' as the woman was being evacuated.

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Initial reports suggested that officers stopped 13 of the group and were still on the lookout for 14 who had made their getaway.

However, this figure has dropped down to 12 after two were found in and around the airport.

Five of those who were stopped were put back on the plane to continue the flight to Istanbul, while the others were processed, with authorities stating they are expected to be put on another flight out of Spain.

As for the woman, although she was pregnant, medical staff determined from a check-up that she was not going into labor and she was detained on charges of public disorder.

It's believed she'll be among the passengers who are set to be deported.

Speaking to AFP, a source from the central government's office in Catalonia said the incident unfolded at around 4.30am local time after operators requested the emergency landing as 'a female passenger's waters had supposedly broken'.

They added: "As they were disembarking the pregnant woman, a group of 28 people left the plane and tried to flee.

"The woman was taken to Sant Joan de Deu hospital for a check-up, which found no signs she was in labor so she was discharged and arrested for disturbing the public order by claiming she had gone into labor."

A similar incident unfolded in November last year when a group of passengers on the same Pegasus Airlines route from Casablanca to Istanbul made an emergency landing in Mallorca.

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One of those on board the flight claimed to be suffering from a diabetic attack, but when the flight diverted to the Palma de Mallorca Airport, 24 passengers fled the scene.

After being tended to by hospital staff, it was discovered that the man who had requested the landing was fine and he was later arrested on similar charges to the pregnant woman.

Meanwhile, 12 of the people who had escaped the plane were detained while another 12 managed to escape into the Spanish Balearic Island.

UNILAD has contacted Pegasus Airlines for comment.