Couple’s trip to Iceland to officiate wedding delayed by spoiled food, diverted flights
By Simon Shaykhet
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ROMULUS, Michigan (WXYZ) — The trip of a lifetime for a metro Detroit couple on their way to Iceland has been nearly spoiled by Delta Air Lines food and that’s not all. Their plans include officiating a wedding ceremony, but other delays have also put arrangements up in the air.
“How difficult has it been to get to Iceland?” I asked Meghan and Zach Wardell.
They were on the flight with Delta Air Lines from Detroit to Amsterdam when a passenger complained of spoiled food. Soon after, the captain made an announcement.
“He was saying there has been a contamination with the food. We are being redirected to JFK. We are so sorry and we’ll tell you more as we find out,” Zach Wardell said.
The couple says this was after their first flight was also delayed due to mechanical issues.
“They come around asking everyone did you have the chicken? We didn’t. We had the pasta, not the chicken,” Meghan Wardell added.
However, that was not the end of their troubles. They were rerouted to North Carolina, where they meant to connect to Iceland, but they say they were denied seats at the gate by Icelandair.
“We walk up to the gate, they’re like you don’t have seats, no tickets. We’re like are you kidding me? At this point we’re exhausted,” Meghan Wardell said.
Booked next to go to New York with hopes of then flying to Iceland, they had missed out on rest and a comfortable place to stay.
“The only sleep the past few days was three hours on a pullout couch,” Meghan Wardell said.
Delta Airlines issued a statement saying:
“Delta flight 136 from Detroit to Amsterdam diverted to New York’s JFK early Wednesday morning, after reports that a portion of the main cabin in flight meal were spoiled. Delta’s Food safety team has engaged our suppliers to immediately isolate the product and launch a thorough investigation into the incident. This is not the service Delta is known for and we sincerely apologize to our customers for the inconvenience and delay in their travels.” The Wardells still plan to make it to the wedding to officiate on Saturday and are in transit.
“The whole time we’re trying to stay levelheaded. Food contamination is weird. It happens,” Zach Wardell said.
Meghan Wardell added, “We try to not let anger stay with us. They gave us rooms and food and such. The main coping mechanism is just like laughing together.”
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