This Is What Happens When A Plane Passenger Dies

Ever been on a plane and thought to yourself: "What if someone died right now? What happens?"

I have. You probably have. It's understandable given that around 3.6 billion passengers fly around the globe each year.

In one instance, earlier this month, a British woman died on a UK-bound plane from Pakistan.

Thanks to the revelation of some travellers who have experienced the death of fellow passengers, the rest of us know what actually goes on.

Image: PA

A spokesperson for Ryanair told Sun Online: "All Ryanair aircraft carry first aid equipment, in full compliance with EU safety regulations, and all crew are trained in first aid procedures, including defibrillators, which are carried on board.

"Should an incident occur in flight which requires medical intervention, our crew divert to the nearest suitable airport and request medical assistance to be on standby before landing."

In most cases, bodies are whisked off to an empty row or business class, covered by a rug. Though it depends on different airlines.

Attendant Annette Long said to Business Insider: "I would probably put a blanket over the person so it would become less of something to look at. You want to maintain dignity and respect for someone who passed away.

"You don't want anyone staring at them. That would be really sad."

One Quora user called Sue Jackman said her husband died on a flight to New Zealand.

Image: PA

She explained: "We were in business class and he went to sleep in a lie flat sleeper seat and did not wake up.

"When he would not wake up I got a flight steward who then went and fetched a passenger who was a doctor.

"He performed the usual signs of life tests and declared him deceased approximately four hours prior to landing.

"He stayed in his sleeper seats covered with a blanket for the rest of the journey and I lay beside him and held him until we landed.

"Interestingly his death certificates states the place of death was Flight NZ5 between Los Angeles and Auckland."

Another person Ana Ansari, said: "A woman sitting two rows behind me on an 11 hour flight from Frankfurt to Singapore had stopped breathing on the last leg of the trip.

"The woman's immediate neighbours were allocated new seats as they lay her across the row of seats.

"Once it was determined that there was nothing else they could do, they covered her body with a sheet (but not her face) and the flight carried on as per normal."

Topics: Death

Josh Teal

Josh Teal is a journalist at LADbible. He has contributed to the 'Knowing Me, Knowing EU' and 'UOKM8?' campaigns interviewing everyone from student drug dealers to climate change activists.

@tealioni