A Delta Connection flight from Salt Lake City en route to Mexico was turned round just short of its destination after what has been loosely described as a ‘paperwork error.’
Delta flight 4507, operated by SkyWest Airlines, was within one hour of landing at Puerto Vallarta when the bad news was announced.
The pilot told passengers their flight couldn’t land in Mexico due to the administrative lapse.
“It’s something that we wouldn’t have known what to do as pilots as far as this airplane not being allowed to land in Mexico,” the announcement said, which was recorded on a passenger’s phone and broadcast on Utah TV station KSL TV.
“It sounds pretty unbelievable, it doesn’t sound like maybe the whole story,” said passenger Casey Boyd.
“The plane returned to Salt Lake City at approximately 6 pm to correct a paperwork issue. The 57 passengers onboard will be provided with hotel accommodations and have been rebooked on a new flight Wednesday morning. We apologize to those customers we’ve inconvenienced and are working to get them on their way as quickly as possible,” a SkyWest spokeswoman said.
Boyd said the airline had earlier informed passengers prior to departure that they were using a smaller airplane than originally scheduled, and it is thought no one at the airline passed that information on to the Mexican authorities.
“They’ve taken pretty good care of us. It’s just one less day of vacation,” Boyd added.
