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| UNITED AIRLINES BOEING 787-9 N29981 (MSN 66142) |
United Flight 236 departed New York's Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR/KEWR) at about 18:00 local time for Palma de Mallorca Airport (PMI/LEPA), Spain, and landed back at Newark at 21:37, according to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The Boeing 767 had 190 passengers and 12 crew members onboard.
Air traffic control audio indicated that the issue involved the name of a discoverable Bluetooth device on the aircraft. In the recording, a controller said a passenger had a Bluetooth device with a “certain four-letter word he didn't want to repeat” as its device name, requiring security personnel to inspect the aircraft, including the cargo area.
Flight tracking data showed the aircraft turning around while over the Atlantic several hundred miles from Newark and using the 7700-emergency squawk code.
According to posts online, the crew repeatedly asked passengers to switch off Bluetooth devices during the flight. One passenger mentioned the crew announced that two devices were still active despite multiple reminders.
The crew turned the aircraft back after communicating with United’s operations center in Chicago.
When the flight returned to Newark, passengers exited the plane using airstairs while Port Authority police conducted a search. They then passed through TSA and Customs and Border Protection screening before boarding a replacement plane with a fresh crew.
The replacement flight departed early on the 31st of May and later arrived in Palma de Mallorca.
This incident comes after several recent cases where wireless device names have set off security alerts on commercial flights.
Aircraft Information:
Air traffic control audio indicated that the issue involved the name of a discoverable Bluetooth device on the aircraft. In the recording, a controller said a passenger had a Bluetooth device with a “certain four-letter word he didn't want to repeat” as its device name, requiring security personnel to inspect the aircraft, including the cargo area.
Flight tracking data showed the aircraft turning around while over the Atlantic several hundred miles from Newark and using the 7700-emergency squawk code.
According to posts online, the crew repeatedly asked passengers to switch off Bluetooth devices during the flight. One passenger mentioned the crew announced that two devices were still active despite multiple reminders.
The crew turned the aircraft back after communicating with United’s operations center in Chicago.
When the flight returned to Newark, passengers exited the plane using airstairs while Port Authority police conducted a search. They then passed through TSA and Customs and Border Protection screening before boarding a replacement plane with a fresh crew.
The replacement flight departed early on the 31st of May and later arrived in Palma de Mallorca.
This incident comes after several recent cases where wireless device names have set off security alerts on commercial flights.
- In January 2026, a Turkish Airlines Airbus A321 flying from Istanbul to Barcelona landed at Barcelona-El Prat Airport after a passenger reportedly named their mobile hotspot with a bomb threat. Spanish authorities searched the plane and found nothing suspicious. Turkish Airlines stated they would take legal action once the passenger responsible was identified.
- On the 10th of May 2026, a KLM flight from Málaga to Amsterdam was delayed for several hours after a Wi-Fi hotspot name indicated there was a bomb onboard. KLM said it treated the threat seriously and coordinated with local authorities.
Airline: United Airlines
Code: AU/UAL
Aircraft: Boeing 767-424(ER)
Registration: N67052
Serial Number: 29447
Engines: 2 x GE CF6-80C2B7F
First Flew: 9th September 2000
Age: 25 Years
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