Qantas cancelled its Rome to Perth flight on Saturday after passengers on the previous day's Perth to Rome journey reported being bitten by bedbugs. The nearly 17-hour flight on Friday aboard a Boeing 787 Dreamliner saw several complaints from economy class passengers about bites. Some were given antihistamines, but supplies ran out mid-flight.
The airline grounded the aircraft for a "deep clean," a spokesperson told the BBC. “We sincerely apologise to customers for the cancellation of Saturday’s Rome to Perth service, which allowed our engineers and maintenance teams to carry out a deep clean of the aircraft after an issue was identified on a small number of economy seats,” the spokesperson said.
Qantas arranged for affected passengers to stay in accommodation and rebooked them on alternative flights within 48 hours of the original departure. The precise scale of the infestation was not disclosed.
Bedbugs are small, wingless parasites that live on clothes, furniture, and bedding. According to the NHS, their bites cause itching but rarely lead to serious health problems. However, eradicating them is costly and complicated. Treatments include washing all bedding and clothing on a hot cycle and tumble drying or sealing items in plastic bags and freezing them for several days.
This incident adds to a growing list of travel disruptions linked to bedbugs. Less than two weeks ago, Southeastern train services in England faced cancellations after drivers found bedbugs in their cabs. In 2017, British Airways apologised after a family flying from Vancouver to London was left covered in bites. Turkish Airlines was reported by the New York Times last year to have multiple bedbug infestations on its planes, with allegations that the airline failed to address the problem adequately.
Qantas has not commented on whether further inspections or preventive measures will follow. The airline’s swift cancellation of the Rome to Perth flight and thorough cleaning of the Dreamliner suggest a serious approach to containing the issue.
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