ISLAMABAD: A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane flying from Paris to Islamabad made an emergency landing in Bulgaria after a woman passenger suffered a heart attack during the flight.
The passenger fell unconscious after the heart attack and the pilot after declaring emergency landed his plane at the nearest airport. She was rushed to a hospital after the plane landed at Bulgaria’s Sofia International Airport.
According to a PIA spokesman, due to the emergency, the PIA flight got delayed by over three hours and reached Islamabad International Airport at 2:30am. The PIA is operating charter flights between Paris and Islamabad.
Last month, a British Airways flight from Islamabad to London made an emergency landing in the Uzbek capital Tashkent after an elderly woman on board fell ill.
Flight BA260 from Islamabad to London Heathrow was almost two hours into its scheduled eight-hour flight when the pilots diverted because of a medical emergency.
They turned the aircraft around and requested permission to land in Tashkent, and touched down just 35 minutes later. The passenger, believed to be an 83-year-old woman, subsequently died. The pilots had intended to continue to the UK but the aircaft could not leave due to a “minor technical issue” and replacement aircraft had to be sent.
The plane is believed to have been almost full. It was expected to be the first aircraft to arrive from a former “red list” country. The replacement aircraft arrived after a delay of over 25 hours.
When it became clear that the aircraft would not be able to leave, British Airways had limited options for looking after the passengers. Passengers were provided with food and water on board the plane. A lounge area inside the Soviet-era airport was later secured, with meals and refreshments available for passengers.
Diversions to airports in the former USSR are not unusual, with many flights between Asia and Europe passing over the region. Such events are especially problematic when the airline has no existing presence at the airport. BA has no staff in the Uzbek capital.
