Scared PAX force Air Berlin to replace aircraft

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Wild weekend for Germany's second largest carrier Air Berlin: Rebellious passengers forced the airline to fly in a replacement aircraft on Sunday after a Boeing 737-800 scheduled to leave for Faro failed to take off from Nuremberg airport twice, German news agencies report. According to reports, the aircraft had to abort after pilots detected a failure with flap control instruments while taxiing out.

After returning to the gate, where passengers left aircraft while maintenance work was done, 170 of 172 pax re-boarded, with two scared passengers opting out. Second attempt at take-off an hour later was aborted after control lights failed again, most reports say. A differing AFP report states that second abort was due to a cabin crew member fainting.

After two aborted take-offs and evacuations, remaining passengers refused to board the plane again and demanded the aircraft be replaced. Passengers were accomodated at a local hotel while replacement was flown in from Antalya. Flight finally commenced 15 hours after scheduled time.

An airline spokeswoman stressed that there was no technical issue with the plane and referred to the crew's handling of the control light malfunction as "routine". The aircraft was new, the airline said, faulty control instruments were not an un-common issue with today's technologically advanced planes. "Passengers were very concerned and reacted in panic", the spokeswoman was quoted. There had been "a psychological element" after the Spanair accident at Madrid, she reportedly said.

Also on Sunday, an Air Berlin flight from Malaga to Nuremberg had to return to Malaga after an issue with a fuel filter occured 30 minutes into the flight. Again, some passengers refused to board the aircraft again, news agencies report. On Saturday, an aircraft bound to Faro from Hamburg had to divert to Dusseldorf after a birdstrike damaged engine and fuselage, the spokeswoman said. Passengers continued travel on a replacement aircraft.