In a dramatic turn of events, a FlySafair flight from Cape Town to Lanseria on Monday morning was forced to make an emergency landing in Bloemfontein, to attend to a male passenger in his 60s who had lost consciousness during the journey.
A concerned passenger, who was on board the flight that took off at approximately 7.20 am, reached out to “The Citizen” to share the harrowing experience.
The crew, upon identifying the passenger in distress, swiftly issued an urgent call to the 184 passengers on board, seeking assistance from any medical professionals among them.
FlySafair spokesperson, Kirby Gordon reported that the airline's crew, possessing basic first aid training, promptly responded to a medical emergency during the flight.
The crew identified a passenger in distress, suspected to have suffered a stroke, while the flight was cruising. Immediate action was taken to stabilize the individual.
As the passenger's condition worsened, the captain made the crucial decision to divert the flight to Bloemfontein, the nearest airport with medical facilities.
The aircraft safely touched down at 08.43am, where medical personnel were already on standby to assist.
Gordon said: “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.”
Remarkably, the flight resumed its journey approximately one hour later, eventually reaching its scheduled destination in Lanseria.
“The Citizen”'s source commended FlySafair staff for their "extremely professional" handling of the emergency.
"Medical emergencies fortunately don’t happen all that frequently but our crews are all trained to manage them when they do," assured Gordon.
The airline has not received confirmation regarding the condition of the passenger or the nature of his medical emergency but has wished him a speedy recovery.