United Airlines Boeing 777 Loops 8 Hours, Returns to San Francisco Gate
United Airlines Flight UA948, a Boeing 777-200ER from San Francisco to London, executed an eight-hour aerial loop, landing at its departure gate instead of Heathrow. Trending searches like 'why do planes return to origin' and 'Boeing 777 technical issues' spiked as passengers learned midair that 'your safety is our top priority,' according to the airline’s app.
That surreal airborne boomerang ended with passengers reentering SFO just after midnight, greeted by the same fluorescent lights and baggage carousel as if time had folded. Inquiries for 'can you get a refund if your flight returns to origin' and 'flight cancellation compensation United Airlines' surged. Meanwhile, the rescheduled 1:18 a.m. flight was canceled too—leaving travelers to ponder if their luggage had just completed the aviation equivalent of a treadmill marathon.
UA948’s journey mapped a 4,000-mile donut over the U.S.-Canada border, only for every passenger to collect frequent flyer miles without ever leaving the airport’s gravitational pull.