Passenger’s ‘Terrorist’ WiFi Network Delays Flight for Hours
As if you needed yet another reason to hate air travel.
An American Airlines flight due to leave Los Angeles at 7:50 a.m. Sunday was delayed after a passenger noticed on his smartphone a poorly spelled WiFi network named “Al-Quida Free Terror Nettwork,” according to ABC7.
The concerned citizen notified a flight attendant, and the London-bound flight returned to its original gate. There, in the name of security, passengers of Flight 136 were sentenced to three wretched hours of captivity. At first they were told it was a maintenance issue, but after an hour they let everyone know they were unable to leave because of a security threat.
Even by the time the flight was cleared to take off at 1pm, the crew didn’t feel comfortable doing so. The flight was rescheduled to the following day.
A few things about this. First: If you’re going to make a joke WiFi name, at least spell the terrorist organization’s name correctly. Second: We’re pretty sure that even a terrorist who saw a hotspot called a “Nettwork” would know to steer clear. Who do you think invented shady WiFi, after all? Third: Oh my god, this story is giving me a headache.
And the perpetrator of this gag? According to the airport, “After further investigation, it was determined that no crime was committed and no further action will be taken.”
In other words, the jokester runs free, waiting to sabotage your next flight. Beware, travelers. WiFi lurks at every corner.
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An original version of this story stated that the flight took place the same day of the incident, the flight was delayed for four hours, and that passengers did not learn of the threat until landing. In fact, the flight was rescheduled to Monday and passengers were informed of the threat after an hour of delay, and in total they were kept waiting for three hours. (Still horrible).
