Woman Under Fire After In-Flight Flatulence
Plane Has Emergency Landing In Nashville

UPDATED: 11:19 am EST December 5, 2006

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- What do you do if you pass embarrassing gas on an airplane? One woman found out what not to do.

A Nashville International Airport spokeswoman said an American Airlines plane bound for Texas had to make an emergency landing Monday morning in Nashville after matches were lit in flight.

The pilot said the concern was what passengers said they smelled inside the aircraft and that he did not feel it was safe to continue on.

"About 6:30 this morning, an American Airlines pilot called the FAA tower reporting that passengers were smelling fumes like matches being struck within the cabin," said airport spokeswoman Lynne Lowrance.

The 99 passengers and five crew members were taken inside the terminal after landing so the plane could be checked out.

"They did find evidence of where matches had been struck in an individual's seating area. That individual is being questioned by the FBI at this time," Lowrance said.

A woman passenger told investigators that she lit matches to mask gas that she emitted.

"You can take up to eight books of safety matches, the paper matches, onto the aircraft," Lowrance said.

Just before noon authorities said the passengers re-boarded the plane and continued on to Texas.

The female passenger was released without being charged, but was not allowed back on the American Airlines flight.

The female passenger was released without being charged, but was not allowed back on the American Airlines flight.

Mazec wrote:

The female passenger was released without being charged, but was not allowed back on the American Airlines flight.

For letting a big one on a plane and then being humane enough to cover the stench by striking a match? For that she had to sacrifice the money she put up for tickets and got stranded in Nahsville to boot? A ringing endorsement for AA.

At least she wasn't implicated in a terrorist plot to incapacitate the crew with fart odor so the plane could be hijacked and flown into the white house...