Flight carrying 85 plumbers U-turns after toilet issues

They say truth is stranger than fiction.  

And that’s certainly true when it comes to a recent flight by budget carrier Norwegian – which was forced to U-turn because of broken toilets, despite 85 of the passengers being plumbers.

The deliciously ironic drama played out on flight DY1156, which took off from Oslo Gardermoen for Munich on Saturday morning.

Unfortunately, the aircraft only reached the Swedish border before it was required to turn back, circling for several minutes over Hedmark, Norway, to burn excess fuel. 

It’s not clear why there were so many specialist tradesmen on board simultaneously, but it’s believed they were all part of the same company: Rørkjøp. 

The company’s CEO, Frank Olsen, said his staff were unable to intervene and correct the mid-flight problem because it could only be fixed via the exterior.

‘We would have liked to fix the restrooms, but unfortunately it had to be done from the outside and we didn’t risk sending a plumber to work at 10,000m,’ he told Dagbladet. 

‘There was a good atmosphere in the plane, what with the irony about the broken toilets.’ 

You couldn’t make it up! It’s not clear why there were so many specialist tradesmen on board simultaneously, but it’s believed they were all part of the same company: Rørkjøp (stock image)

Thankfully, ground engineers at Oslo Gardermoen managed to resolve the issue and, upon its second attempt, the plane successfully completed the trip to Munich, landing circa midday.

A Norwegian spokesperson told MailOnline Travel: ‘Flight DY1156from Oslo to Munich on Saturday 27 January returned to Oslo due to a technical fault with the toilet. 

‘The aircraft was repaired and continued with the flight later that day. 

‘We would like to thank passengers for their patience and would like to apologise for the inconvenience.’