A United Airlines flight from Washington Dulles International Airport to Rome was canceled after passengers spent nearly 12 hours dealing with technical problems, thunderstorms, refueling and crew changes.
United Airlines Flight 884 was scheduled to leave Dulles at 5:35 p.m. on Oct. 2 for an overnight flight to Rome Fiumicino Airport. Instead, a series of problems kept the Boeing 777-200ER on the ground until the airline canceled the departure at around 4 a.m. the following morning.
United said the aircraft initially returned to the gate after taxiing so it could take on additional fuel for a longer route around bad weather. During the delay, the airline brought in a replacement crew and resolved a maintenance issue.
The aircraft later pushed back again but required another mechanical inspection. United eventually canceled the flight because the replacement crew reached its duty-time limit.
We rebooked customers on an extra flight that departed on Saturday evening, United said.
Passengers said boarding started at about 4:30 p.m. The first problem involved a technical issue in the cockpit, followed by severe weather while the aircraft was waiting to depart.
The pilot moved the plane aside and shut it down to conserve fuel. Roughly three hours later, it returned to the gate for refueling, where passengers were given the option to leave the aircraft.
Another delay followed when passengers were told food on board had been sitting too long and needed to be replaced. After about six hours, the original crew reached its legal duty limit, forcing passengers to leave the aircraft while United arranged another crew.
Passengers boarded again once the replacement crew arrived. They were then told the aircraft needed more fuel, followed by another technical problem involving a door that wasn’t sealing correctly.
The aircraft eventually began moving away from the gate, but passengers heard a loud bang. According to Bliden, the pilot told them part of the pushback tug had broken and something had struck the aircraft, requiring another inspection.
The flight was finally rescheduled for Saturday evening. United said passengers were placed on an extra flight, which departed Dulles shortly before 7 p.m., putting them on their way to Rome more than 25 hours after the original scheduled departure.
United provided a $175 voucher for the disruption. She described the experience as absurd and said she wanted a full refund from the airline.
The delays drew frustration from other passengers as well, though some travelers commenting online defended the airline’s safety decisions. One United customer noted that many aviation operating rules exist because of previous accidents and said avoiding another delay wasn’t worth compromising safety.
Travel experts said the combination of weather and mechanical problems makes responsibility less clear because some causes fall within an airline’s control while others do not.
Passengers facing extended disruptions should check the airline’s published commitments and federal passenger-rights information before deciding whether to continue traveling or request a refund.
United continued operating the replacement service the following evening after the original Flight 884 never left Washington for Rome.
