FlySafair

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FlySafair: Police begin investigation after passenger dies on a plane

There’s some terribly sad news reaching us from OR Tambo on Tuesday, after a FlySafair passenger died on board one of the airline’s planes.

FlySafair

Photo: Envato Elements

A FlySafair flight from Johannesburg to Cape Town was the scene of a tragic incident on Tuesday morning when a passenger died on the plane shortly after embarking. The FA200 flight was delayed by several hours after paramedics were called to respond. Sadly, the passenger was declared dead at the scene.

FlySafair death on flight FA200 – what we know:

Police are now investigating the circumstances behind the death, but nothing is being treated as suspicious at this stage – it’s standard protocol for an airline to hand over the plane to SAPS once a death has been recorded on the aircraft. Passengers were ushered off the flight and eventually on-board another plane.

FlySafair issued a statement earlier on Tuesday, expressing their “immense sadness” over the passing. They revealed that the deceased passenger had collapsed just as he entered the plane, en-route to finding his seat:

“It is with immense sadness that FlySafair confirms the passing of one of our customers who was in the process of boarding flight FA200 from OR Tambo to Cape Town. The customer collapsed during boarding, as he entered the door of the aircraft, for unknown reasons.”

“Paramedics were immediately called to assist but were sadly unable to revive the customer. Our thoughts and prayers are with all connected to this person, and with those who witnessed this tragic event this morning. At this stage, we await details from the teams involved in terms of next steps.”

FlySafair statement

Domestic flights affected by tragic incident

FlySafair’s Head of Sales and Distribution Kirby Gordon has also shared his deepest sympathies with those close to the individual, and the passengers who witnessed such a distressing scene. He spoke to us to thank the customers on-board, who “showed their patience in regards to the manner in which this sad event interrupted their travel plans.”

There was also a delay caused to flight FA201, the return leg from Cape Town to Johannesburg which uses the aircraft carrying passengers on FA200. However, the rescheduled journey took off at 10:30, landing at OR Tambo safely on Tuesday afternoon.