flydubai Flight Diverts After Passenger Dies Onboard
The airline said it is in touch with authorities and is supporting the passengers’ next of kin.
A passenger on a flight from Dubai to Dhaka passed away last week, prompting the flight to be diverted. The incident occurred on flydubai flight 523 (FZ523) on Saturday.
The airline has notified authorities to investigate the death. It comes about a month after a passenger on an IndiGo flight died after an emergency landing in Indore.
Details of the incident
flydubai confirmed the incident in a statement to Gulf News.
“We can confirm that flydubai flight FZ 523, operated by Smartwings, from Dubai International (DXB) to Dhaka Airport (DAC) on February 18 diverted to Karachi Airport (KHI) due to a medical emergency.”
A spokesperson from the airline also offered condolences.
“flydubai would like to express its deepest condolences to the family of a passenger who passed away…on flight FZ 523,” the spokesperson said. “Our family assistance team is providing support and our thoughts are with the family of the passenger during this sad time. We are in touch with the relevant authorities.”
The flight, operated by a Boeing 737-800, departed around 13:45 on Saturday and was scheduled to land in Dhaka at 20:30. After diverting to Karachi, the aircraft left for Dhaka at 20:17, according to The National. The cause of the passenger’s death has not been shared, and it is not clear if the passenger passed away on the plane or after it rerouted to land in Karachi. A defibrillator was reportedly used to try resuscitating him but was unsuccessful.
What airline crews do during a medical emergency
Many airlines follow guidelines when a death occurs onboard. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), cabin crew are trained to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) during an inflight medical emergency. They should continue CPR until one of the following occurs:
- Spontaneous breathing and circulation of the passenger resume.
- It becomes unsafe to continue CPR due to moderate and severe turbulence or a forecasted difficult landing after liaising with the flight crew.
- All rescuers are too exhausted to continue.
- The aircraft has landed, and care is transferred to emergency medical services.
- If CPR continues for 30 minutes or longer with no signs of life within this period and no shocks, advised by an onboard Automated External Defibrillator (AED), resuscitate the passenger.
If it has been determined that a passenger was dead mid-flight, the IATA also has guidelines for crew members. First, the crew will need to advise the captain immediately as they must determine if the destination airport has the proper authorities to meet the flight when it arrives. Other guidelines include repositioning the passenger’s body and requesting contact information from traveling companions.
Similar incidents
Inflight deaths do not occur often, but there have been similar incidents. Last month, a passenger’s medical condition began deteriorating onboard an IndiGo flight, prompting the crew to divert. The passenger died after the plane made an emergency landing.
Additionally, flydubai’s sister airline, Emirates, was operating a flight from Sydney to Dubai and diverted to Perth due to a medical emergency. The mid-air emergency also forced Dubai’s flag carrier to delay a Brussel-bound flight to Erbil, Iraq. And last November, a male passenger reportedly died onboard an easyJet flight from Cyprus to London Gatwick Airport.
Source: Gulf News, The National, IATA
