A United Airlines flight from Des Moines, Iowa, to Chicago was delayed more than four hours on Monday, but not for any of the usual reasons. Passengers boarded Flight 2138 expecting a quick trip, only to be caught in the fallout from an apparent onboard blowup between two flight attendants, reports the aviation website Paddle Your Own Kanoo. The argument escalated enough that United's airport management stepped in, deplaned everyone, and pulled the entire cabin crew from duty, which View From the Wing calls a "rare" move.
According to an internal departure record, the official reason for the delay was listed as "crew availability," with further clarification that the issue was a "disagreement on 2 of the FAs," or flight attendants, per PYOK. United's inflight duty manager decided to replace the full team, leaving the airline hunting for backup staff, a task made more difficult by the fact that Des Moines isn't a crew hub.
The flight was originally scheduled to depart at 11:26am, but passengers weren't cleared off the plane until about 12:10pm. The replacement crew didn't get the Airbus A320 off the ground until 3:24pm, with arrival at O'Hare clocking in at 5:09pm—four hours and 12 minutes late, per FlightAware. The flight between the two cities typically takes around an hour. United typically posts explanations for delays on its flight status page, but in this case, the airline kept mum. No official comment was offered when asked.
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