---
title: "American Airlines Passengers Hospitalized With Mysterious Illness After Landing in Boston"
description: "The 13 afflicted were all part of a student group returning from a trip to the Galapagos Islands and Ecuador."
date: "2019-04-22"
modified: "2019-05-25"
authors:
  - name: "Chris Tsui"
    job_title: "Contributor"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/chris-tsui"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/27583/american-airlines-passengers-hospitalized-with-mysterious-illness-after-landing-in-boston"
categories:
  - "News"
tags:
  - "American Airlines"
---

# American Airlines Passengers Hospitalized With Mysterious Illness After Landing in Boston

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2019/04/GettyImages-1052670422-e1555944235849.jpg>)
*\<em\>www.thedrive.com</em>*

A group of 13 American Airlines passengers was taken to the hospital over a mysterious, unidentified illness after landing in Boston on Sunday morning, reports the [*New York Post*](<https://nypost.com/2019/04/21/13-american-airlines-passengers-hospitalized-with-puzzling-illness/>).

Every person who fell ill was apparently part of the same student group flying into Logan International Airport from a layover in Miami after returning from a trip to the Galapagos Islands and Ecuador. Boston EMS says all symptoms were "minor in nature" while one other passenger reportedly witnessed vomiting on the aircraft. A chaperone for the student group apparently told the airline they had all "ate the same thing" before getting sick and being sent to Massachusetts General Hospital.

https://twitter.com/_/status/1119999721354006528

Three other members of the group reportedly felt ill but weren't sick enough to warrant a trip to the hospital. An [American Airlines](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/24622/drunken-american-airlines-baggage-handler-falls-asleep-in-cargo-bay-wakes-up-in-chicago>) representative told [*CNN*](<https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/21/us/logan-airport-boston-ill/index.html>) no other passengers or crew members fell ill.

While this particular news sounds like a relatively [harmless case](<https://www.harvesttableculinary.com/category/our-community/>) of group food poisoning, it comes several months after [an entire Emirates flight](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/23375/emirates-flight-from-dubai-quarantined-at-jfk-due-to-several-sick-passengers-onboard>) had to be quarantined on the runway after almost 100 passengers (out of 500 total) came down with flu-like symptoms.

[On our last episode of "Flying Sucks,"](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/26741/airline-passenger-charges-obese-man-150-to-sit-next-to-him-on-flight-sparks-online-debate>) the internet had a heated discussion with itself after one passenger apparently "charged" an obese row-mate $150 to sit next to him. Hey, here's a not-so-fun dilemma: would you rather sit next to someone a bit larger than average or an average-sized college kid who may or may not vomit profusely 30 minutes after take-off?

## Author
Chris Tsui is *The Drive*'s former Reviews Editor and current freelance automotive journalist. He's based in Toronto.

### Author social links  
[Instagram](<https://www.instagram.com/cltsuii/>)