Family accused of wheeling dead grandmother onto plane after claims she died on board
A flight that was set for London was delayed for hours after staff were alerted to a woman who reportedly died on board.
An easyJet flight was set to travel to London from Malaga, Spain, but was delayed for more than 11 hours.
The issue was an 89-year-old British woman who was set to travel on the plane, flight EZY8070, required medical assistance before the aircraft took off just after 11 am on December 18.
However, witnesses have argued that the elderly woman, who was wheeled on by a wheelchair, was already dead before she had come on Airbus A319 aircraft.
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One passenger, Petra Boddington, spoke to the Sun about the incident.
She said: “Anybody with eyes could see that she was not fit to fly, and it wasn’t just me that thought it, it was everybody else that she went past.
“People sat in front of me even said they’d seen the people that were with her holding her head up.
“We all thought that she looked dead.”
As well as this, Boddington also made a video about the incident on Facebook that went viral.
Another alleged witness, Tracy-Ann Kitching, said on social media: “I saw her wheeled onto the plane; someone was holding her head as they went past me. An actual doctor on board [confirmed] she was already dead when they put her in her seat.”
Witnesses to the scene added that the plane had begun moving away to the runway when the cabin crew were alerted that the passenger had died and returned to the gate.
However, easyJet have argued against this idea and stated that the woman was flying in the care of two medical professionals with a 'fit to fly' certificate.
According to an AviationA2Z report, the woman was also accompanied by at least five other family members.
An easyJet spokesperson added: “Our thoughts are with the family and friends of the customer who sadly passed away, and we are offering support and assistance at this difficult time. She was permitted to fly because she had a medical ‘fit to fly’ certificate and was being supported by medical personnel during her journey.
“It was only after boarding that the customer then required medical assistance and she sadly passed away. The wellbeing of our passengers and crew is always easyJet's highest priority and we would ask customers for their understanding in these circumstances.”
UNILAD has contacted easyJet for comment.
Gerrard Kaonga