A British Airways long haul flight was canceled after authorities carried out a drug bust on the aircraft, as flagged by PYOK, and documented by a passenger on Reddit. That’s gotta be awkward (and this isn’t even British Airways’ only drug bust of the week).
In this post:
British Airways Cancun to London flight busted with dugs
This incident happened on Tuesday, April 8, 2025, and involves British Airways flight BA2202 from Cancun (CUN) to London (LGW). The flight was scheduled to depart at 8PM and arrive at 11:35AM the following morning, operated by a Boeing 777-200ER with the registration code G-YMME.
The flight’s departure was already delayed quite a bit, due to a late inbound aircraft, so the departure time was updated to 9:40PM. Around 9PM, the crew boarded the aircraft, and a short while later, priority boarding and those needing extra time were invited to board.
Then boarding suddenly stopped, and passengers were told that an update would be provided in 10 minutes. However, there were no updates for hours.
Then around 10:20PM, passengers spotted a large number of police officers and sniffer dogs on the apron going through bags, taking out what looked like “bricks” of drugs. Some samples were reportedly taken.
Finally, after nearly five hours, at 12:45AM, the British Airways ground staff informed passengers that the flight was canceled, as further investigations needed to be carried out. Passengers were also told that the plane could be seized for a few days, so there weren’t yet details about when passengers could actually depart. It was possible that passengers would simply be rebooked on other routings on subsequent days.
Passengers then had to collect their bags and go through immigration again, and made it to a hotel around 2AM. Some passengers reportedly weren’t even checked in until 5:30AM, as they had to wait hours until it was their turn to check-in.
The flight to London operated with a 24+ hour delay
Fortunately the aircraft was “cleared” relatively quickly, and the plane ended up being allowed to operate roughly 24 hours later, on April 9, with the replacement flight number BA9603. The aircraft finally ended up taking off at 10:13PM, and touched down in London the following day at 12:47PM, after a flight of 8hr34min.
British Airways has “apologized to customers for the overnight delay to their flight to London Gatwick,” blaming it on “circumstances entirely out of our control.”
I’m sure we’ll never know, but I’m mighty curious as to what the story actually is, in terms of how the drugs got on the plane. Were the drugs in a passenger’s bag, were the drugs being shipped as cargo, or what?
Bottom line
A transatlantic British Airways flight was canceled after authorities found drugs on the aircraft. This discovery happened after the crew and passengers started to board the aircraft. Passengers weren’t given any updates for hours, before ultimately being put up in a hotel, where many passengers were only checked in by the morning.
While a lot of drugs are transported by planes, it’s rare to see a bust like this, where boarding is literally being stopped while police search the aircraft. It sounds like something straight out of “Locked Up Abroad.”
What do you make of this British Airways drug bust?
Cancun is a changing place. Visited again last year as my partner is an Egyptologist and plenty to work on there.
We heard they wish to make it like a Las Vegas. It was said that gambling would be coming soon.
Surprised the plane is bringing coke from the UK to Cancun, thought it would be the other way around.
We observed large groups of prostitutes from the USA coming to Cancun...
Cancun is a changing place. Visited again last year as my partner is an Egyptologist and plenty to work on there.
We heard they wish to make it like a Las Vegas. It was said that gambling would be coming soon.
Surprised the plane is bringing coke from the UK to Cancun, thought it would be the other way around.
We observed large groups of prostitutes from the USA coming to Cancun and Tulum (further south on the penisula).
We observed large groups of American young men picking up these women in the lobby.
Not sure how it will turn out, ie; recent American couple from Michigan spent a month in Cancun jail upon arrival. Lucky for them Trump got them released.
1. What plenty of work does an Egyptologist have in Cancun?
2. It is unknown where the coke was loaded up into the plane.
3. Prostitution is legal in Mexico under federal law.
4. Where did you observe large groups of prostitutes coming to Cancun/Tulum? How do you know they were prostitutes?
5. The American couple from Michigan was going through a judicial process in Mexico as they had been charged...
1. What plenty of work does an Egyptologist have in Cancun?
2. It is unknown where the coke was loaded up into the plane.
3. Prostitution is legal in Mexico under federal law.
4. Where did you observe large groups of prostitutes coming to Cancun/Tulum? How do you know they were prostitutes?
5. The American couple from Michigan was going through a judicial process in Mexico as they had been charged with fraud; compare that to the man who was living in Maryland wrongly deported to El Salvador and what Trump is doing
Would that be eligible for eu261 comp?
No.
It’s now being reported that a second BA aircraft has been involved in a drugs incident after an engineer found a brick of cocaine in the lavatory at LGW onboard a flight from MCO.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/34447247/cocaine-british-airways-plane-toilet/?utm_source=flipboard&utm_content=topic/britishairways
I'm afraid to think how this stuff could even go there. No screening in CUN? If it had been something else? And who was awaiting tht stuff in London, ready to bring it out? No screening in LON?
These schemes are often inside jobs, with the participation of crooked baggage handlers and corrupt border/customs officers.
Is it common to have customs screening on the outbound? I was under impression that departing baggage normally only does security screening.
As for arrival, if it's a pax/crew bag, it would take a lot of coincidence to have it screened. I only had one customs check on (air) arrival anywhere in Europe in the last decade, and that was when I was having three bags, and even then it didn't lead to a screening,...
Is it common to have customs screening on the outbound? I was under impression that departing baggage normally only does security screening.
As for arrival, if it's a pax/crew bag, it would take a lot of coincidence to have it screened. I only had one customs check on (air) arrival anywhere in Europe in the last decade, and that was when I was having three bags, and even then it didn't lead to a screening, they let me go after asking a couple of questions and concluding I'm not likely to be smuggling anything.
Drug trade is normally dealt with through intelligence means, brute force checks are too impractical and inefficient.
@Lucky: Last time I flew out of CUN, I noticed that both when an arriving plane is unloaded and a departing one is loaded, the ramp workers always pat each other down before and after the job.
I imagine we’ll find out soon enough. Nothing in local news outlets which is odd. What’s crazier is that on 4/11 there were two SEPARATE stories about busts at CUN. 4kg of fent and 150kg of coke. Wild.
Dugs? Proofreading pls.
Also, "member involving" perhaps better as "involved."
BA crew check luggage under the aircraft on long haul
But how does it get to the destination if it's left under the aircraft?
I suppose it will be hard to remember to follow up here, but I will eventually wonder how would a cabin crew be involved with this, and what the evidence shows. From the video it looked like a pallet full of bricks -- that has to involve baggage handlers or a team underneath the plane, right?
Good stuff Mexican officials.