jackiedada

I have never experienced medical emergencies in my 18 years of flying EK, but then I experienced 2 such incidents on my last trip leading me to wonder if EK crew has been asked to be xtra cautious in watching out for pax who could potentially develop medical complications mid-flight.

So on my last trip:
1. EK203 on 3-Mar (delayed 1.5 hours - doors closed and flight diverted back to terminal to offload)
2. EK506 on 11-Mar (delayed 2.5 hours, pax offloaded before doors closing but baggage offloading took way longer and then long wait for ATC clearance.)

In both flights, the pax seemed in a good enough health to get off their seats, take their carry-ons from the O/H bins and walk off the a/c without any external help. The situation on EK506 was confusing - it was a bus boarding, relatively hot, and an elderly family (husband + wife) who were able to climb the stairs with their bags and make their way to their seats, perhaps asked for 'too much water', leading the crew to check their condition and trigger an 'offload'. Again, pax were able to get the bags from O/H bins, walk out of the a/c and down the stairs on their own.
Perhaps, it is just me but I felt that the pax looked just fine and EK crew on the pretext of a "full medical checkup before you can fly", had them offloaded. Or maybe they had a medication condition that really required them to be offloaded - I don't know.

Somehow, I just felt that the crew is being xtra cautious these days so probably better to not start 'whining' on the ground unless you are really feeling sick or run the risk of getting offloaded. Anyone else feel the same?

Also, just came across another story and not a happy ending here and feel sad for the two pax.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...w/63339795.cms

XXTSGR

I think you've answered your own question - the last thing anyone, PIC, cabin crew, pax, airline, ATC etc. want is a mid-air emergency, precautionary or emergency landing. So better to be a bit more risk-averse and err on the side of caution. This obviously doesn't mean that you can't ask for water on the ground and have to keep stumm. However, better to raise a concern about one's own wellbeing or rely on crew spotting anyone who looks or behaves oddly (they are trained to watch out for signs of pax not being well/fit to fly) than to keep fingers crossed, hope for the best and let the plane take off!

Dubai76

I had one guy once coughing from boarding , I asked him if he was good to fly, said he suffered from asthma but had his inhaler, I asked him to check and he said that he just used it...sure enough 20 minutes after take off he's having an asthma attack and guess what no inhaler, he lied about having it and admired being afraid to getting offloaded for not being fit to fly. Ended up calling meddling and using oxygen and on board medication for asthma. So yes its better to be extra cautious then crossing fingers that all goes well.

thijsseh

I have once been the subject of a 'medical repatriation', not a medical emergency.
I had an accident, was admitted to hospital for a few days and was declared 'fit to fly' by the treating doctors (this was in a west European country if it makes any difference).Although I would have been happy to fly back home alone, my travel insurance insisted that I fly back with a 'medical escort' (and told me that they would not take any responsibility if I turned down the escort). At this case, the travel insurance took over the process of returning home. I was already booked on an EK flight and indicated that I would prefer to return on that original booking (it was in J). The travel insurance coordinator told me he would try his best, but (and this is the relevance to this post) warned me that Emirates was 'very difficult and reluctant' with medical repatriation cases and that it was up to EK medical staff if they would take me. In the end, I was given the OK on the morning of the flight (which left at 22:00). During the flight, and also the connecting flight, the purser came to ask my medical escort (a doctor, specialising in this work) if I was OK. Fortunately I was still travelling on the same booking (but in a different seat than I has originally selected) so the CD driver was waiting for me on arrival. I declined the wheelchair service, both in DXB and at destination. And the doctor said I was the easiest case he had ever had.
To get back to the crux of the matter and the OP: it seems indeed that EK are quite conservative / careful when it comes to pax with medical issues.

XXTSGR

thijsseh

I completely agree with you, but my contact in the travel insurance indicated that EK is (one of) the most 'difficult' ones. I'm not trying to say whether this is good or bad, just a statement of what I was told as a fact. The other possibilities for me to fly on would have been LH, KL, AF, BA, which (in his opinion) would have been 'easier to organise'.

Allan38103

In the U.S., it's inappropriate to be discussing someone else's medical condition on a public forum without their permission.

skywardhunter

You should inform the person who's condition it is so they can sue the OP...oh wait, they weren't identified in this discussion of a middle eastern carrier

Often1

Medical diversions are not only dangerous for the individual passenger, but sometimes present risks for other passengers and crew as well. They are extraordinarily expensive and inconvenience a great number of people.

Making an effort to assure that all passengers are fit to fly is not only commonsense, but good business practice. Sometimes people need to be protected against their own stupidity, e.g., guy flying without an asthma inhaler which he then needs.

skywardhunter

Just to add that physical impairment is not the only reason one wouldn't be fit to fly. And some physical impairment isn't easy to see. Could be nausea, gastro issues, all kinds of other internal complaints, weakness, circulatory problems etc. For liability reasons EK would be unlikely to carry pax' luggage, perhaps if pax are unable even wait for ground staff

DYKWIA

Good job I'm not in the US then.

XXTSGR

Saltire74

M.dA.R.

ioto1902

A person who looks fine from outside, is not always OK inside.
I don't know if these persons were forced to deplane, but, if they were willing to stay on the ground, then let them be. Maybe, it was a panic attack. Who knows ?

Similar to what happened to another poster, I was also repatriated once by plane. I was fine, but insurance obliged me to lay on a stretcher ...
First time ever, I had 6 boarding passes in hand ... With the medic, the nurse and my spouse, we occupied 3 rows of 3 economy seats for a two-hour flight ...
(For those curious, 3 rows of 2 seats were folded, and the stretcher was fixed over them, at the rear of a A320)
Again, I was feeling perfectly fine ...