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- Travelers encountered bedbugs on three Turkish Airlines flights, The New York Times reported.
- One passenger said they saw bedbugs fall from the ceiling onto another person’s lap.
- A science teacher said found 13 bite marks on her body after her flight.
Turkish Airlines passengers told The New York Times they had encountered bedbugs on three flights in recent months.
Two incidents resulted in offers of minor compensation, and the airline told one passenger that “no record of any disruption” existed in relation to another, the outlet reported.
Matthew Myers, 28, told the newspaper he and his girlfriend were flying from Istanbul to San Francisco in October.
He said a passenger next to him drew his attention to bedbugs on the seat and falling from the ceiling, before some landed on the person’s lap.
“Multiple passengers were asking to move seats after discovering bugs,” Myers told the Times.
He said one passenger moved to a jump seat for flight attendants.
Myers said Turkish Airlines offered him a 10% discount on future travel that was valid through the following two months.
In another incident the same month, Kristin Bourgeois told the Times she found bedbugs on her blanket and pillow during a 10-hour flight from Washington Dulles Airport.
The 37-year-old science teacher said she found 13 bite marks on her body afterward and took photos.
After filing her complaint, Turkish Airlines told Bourgeois it required a doctor’s medical report before investigating, per the Times. The report said her flight history was later removed from the airline’s app, before she was offered 5,000 frequent flyer miles.
Patience Titcombe also told the newspaper she noticed a bedbug on her seat during a Turkish Airlines flight from Johannesburg.
She posted a picture on X in March with the comment: “@TurkishAirlines bedbugs on our inbound flight to IST is every travelers nightmare!!!”
Titcombe said a flight attendant disposed of the bug and dismissed her concern about it.
The Times reported that Titcombe complained through Facebook Messenger and email, and sent photos, although the carrier said “no record of any disruption” existed.
Turkish Airlines did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider and did not respond to a request from the Times.
The report comes after heightened concern about bedbugs in 2023.
During an outbreak in Paris, bedbugs were seen on public transportation. South Korea also launched a campaign targeting transportation hubs.
