Date: 202001
Aircraft: B737-800
Operator: Air Carrier
Operating under: Part 121
Flight plan: IFR
Mission: Passenger
Flight phase: Cruise
Reporter organization: Air Carrier
Reporter function: Flight Attendant In Charge
Human factors: Physiological - Other; Troubleshooting
Anomaly: Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Illness / Injury; Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Smoke / Fire / Fumes / Odor
Detector: Person Flight Attendant
When detected: In-flight
Result: General Flight Cancelled / Delayed; General Maintenance Action; General Work Refused
Contributing factors: Aircraft; Human Factors
Primary problem: Aircraft

Narrative: Flight Attendant 3 brought to my attention that there was an unusual odor in the back of the main cabin. I went to the back and confirmed; Flight Attendant 3 and 4 were unaware of odor but looked unexpressive. I notified the Captain. He said planes have funny smells; I said yes but this smells different; something smells like it is a hot electrical smell. Captain said check ovens; there are no ovens in the back galley. We then were troubleshooting where it was coming from; a foul; electric; burned plastic smell. Passengers; cell phones; batteries; bathrooms; galley. I looked up; turned on the air vents in the galley as I stepped back I looked up at the vents above the Flight Attendant jumpseats; that is where the odor was coming from. It was 1 hour into the flight; the Captain said there was nowhere to land we have to go to [destination] at this point. I suggested that the #2; #4 flight attendants go up to the front of the cabin to get some air in the front galley. When we landed the Captain asked us what we wanted to do; he wanted to go home. I suggested that the Captain should go back and smell it; have a mechanic check out the odor as well. It was not normal; my gut feeling was this is not safe. Then the gate agent came up and others smelled it while the door was open and the air was flowing through the cabin. That is when the Captain; First Officer and then the Mechanic went back to check it out. They smelled it with the door open; now smell it with the back door closed? It was worse. The Mechanic went down to check it out; he came up to tell us; he showed us on his phone a picture; that it had failed the test; he called [Maintenance Control]; they grounded the plane. It wasn't safe to go back to ZZZ. Captain and First Officer got a room; we were told a ferry plane was coming in; they timed out and needed rest and would be taking the plane back in the morning. There were no rooms for us. Scheduling wanted us to work back the ferry flight; we declined since it was a fume event; we would deadhead back and seek medical attention since now we could not get off the plane [due to] security. So the rolling delay began; 2 hours; 4 hours; 6 hours 7 hours; sunset later; if it wasn't for the mechanic who went to a burrito; then later he went to get us a slice of pizza he ordered and paid for; that is all we had to eat. We felt light-headed; tired; stressed; hot and dehydrated. We followed procedures in communicating with the Captain and company. Were we safe staying on this plane with this smell? We stayed in the forward part of the plane with only the front door open. I asked 5 things; deadhead back to base; Flight Service meet the flight; a car to take us to the hospital; a room to sleep then be able to go home. Being #1; a trained Flight Attendant and a CIRT (Critical Incident Response Team) member. That is what we are trained to do. Be safe and safety first!I think that the Captain could have been more proactive; caring for his flight crew safety; writing this event up in the book. A hotel? Food? Supported us. The First Officer was helpful; he spoke the language. We ALL wanted to go to ZZZ; he home and we had a great layover and finish our trip; get paid. To prevent this event from reoccurring? Maintain the air filters on our airplanes; do more safety checks; when flight attendants bring up odd odors in the cabin they should listen not dismiss it; write it off! Clean airflow and water is the only thing we need to survive in the cabin for short periods of time; then food and rest and get paid for going beyond the call of duty.




Synopsis: B737-800 Flight Attendants reported a fume event during cruise that resulted in Maintenance grounding the aircraft after landing.