A FlySafair flight making its way from Cape Town to Lanseria on Monday morning made an emergency landing in Bloemfontein to save a passenger in need of urgent medical care.
A passenger who was on board a FlySafair flight on Monday morning contacted The Citizen to report that a male passenger in his 60s had lost consciousness while on board the flight from Cape Town to Lanseria, which took off at approximately 7:20 am.
Upon spotting the passenger in need of medical assistance, the crew acted promptly with an urgent call to the 184 passengers on board for any medical professionals on flight to offer assistance.
As per The Citizen, Flysafair’s Kirby Gordon says:
“While cruising, the crew identified a passenger requiring medical assistance,”
“Equipped with basic first aid training, the crew promptly responded to the situation, notifying the captain and attempting to stabilise the passenger. A call was made for any medical professionals onboard to lend assistance,” he said.
“According to the crew, the man was on blood pressure medication and likely suffered a stroke,” he added.
The captain decided to divert the flight to the nearest airport in Bloemfontein when the passenger’s condition became critical. Gordon continues:
“The flight safely landed in Bloemfontein at 08:43, where medical personnel were already prepared to assist. The passenger was stabilised in the ambulance and transported to the nearest hospital for further treatment,”
The flight then took off approximately one hour later to make its scheduled arrival in Lanseria. According to The Citizen’s source, FlySafair staff were “extremely professional” in handling the matter.
“Medical emergencies fortunately don’t happen all that frequently but our crews are all trained to manage them when they do,” says Gordon, adding that the airline does not have confirmation of the condition of the passenger now, or the nature of his medical emergency, but wishes him a speedy recovery.
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