Fumes Sicken Passengers, Crew

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Nine crew members and passengers aboard a Jamaica-bound US Airways flight were taken to a hospital with coughs and sore throats after smelling strong odors today, two months after 15 people aboard the same jet were treated for similar problems.

Some of the 152 passengers aboard Flight 985 began complaining of a foul electrical smell soon after it pushed away from its gate at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport bound for Montego Bay, US Airways spokeswoman Michelle Mohr said.

Two pilots, five flight attendants and two passengers sought medical attention, the airline said. All were expected to be discharged from Carolinas Medical Center within hours of arriving, spokesman Raymond Jones said.

The remaining passengers and a new crew left for Jamaica this afternoon, Mohr said.

The same aircraft, a Boeing 767, was yanked out of service for five days and inspected after seven crew members and eight passengers aboard a Jan. 16 flight arriving in Charlotte from St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, complained of scratchy throats and itchy eyes, Mohr said.

The crew members were examined at a hospital while the passengers were checked out inside the airport and continued traveling to their destinations the same night, she said.