Qantas canceled its Rome to Perth flight on October 13, 2026, after passengers reported bedbug bites on board a Boeing 787 Dreamliner on the preceding leg. The discovery led to the grounding of the aircraft to address the infestation before continuing its route to Australia.
The affected Boeing 787 was removed from service to undergo a deep cleaning by engineers following the detection of bedbugs on a limited number of economy class seats. Qantas arranged hotel accommodations for passengers booked on the canceled flight and rebooked them onto alternative services within 48 hours. A company spokesperson issued an apology to
customers for the disruption.
Bedbugs are small, wingless insects that feed on blood and can be transported via clothing, luggage, or bedding. Health authorities such as the UK’s National Health Service and Australia’s Victorian Better Health Channel note bites usually cause itchy red welts but do not transmit diseases or pose significant health risks. Eliminating bedbugs is challenging, often requiring laundering fabrics at high temperatures or freezing sealed items.
Qantas maintains a routine cleaning and disinfection schedule for its aircraft, disinfecting each plane every 50 days as a preventive measure. The recent incident highlights how the presence of bedbugs on
a small part of a long-haul aircraft can necessitate taking the entire plane out of service for remediation.
Passengers affected by the cancellation experienced delays up to two days. Qantas provided hotel stays and rescheduled flights to minimize inconvenience during the disruption on the Rome to Perth route.
