Virgin Australia Flight Turns Back Due To Leaking Sinks, Airline Denies Claims Of Human Waste In Aisles

A Virgin Australia Airlines flight headed to Sydney was forced to return back to Los Angeles on Tuesday due to leaking sinks on board. The airline company reportedly denied passenger claims that human waste had reached the aisles.

The airline reportedly said that Flight VA2 had to return back for the comfort of the people on board. The flight was scheduled to continue to Christchurch in New Zealand from Sydney early on Tuesday. Passengers reportedly complained that the smell inside the aircraft was “unbearable.”

"In accordance with standard operating procedures, the captain made the decision to return to port as a precautionary measure after two of the sinks on board were leaking," the airline said in a statement, according to BBC. "The onboard toilets operate on a completely separate drainage system. As the issue was with the aircraft sink, and not the toilets, there was no incident of leaked human waste.”

Although the airline did not reveal the reason behind the leakage, it reportedly said that “the safety of the aircraft was never in question.”

The airline reportedly said that arrangements were made to get the passengers to their destination.

“The aircraft has now been inspected by engineers and cleared to return to service," the airline said, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.