China-bound flight diverted to Kolkata as girl collapses in plane, dies

Flight IA-473 of Iraqi Airways landed safely and later departed again. The passenger was declared dead at the hospital.

According to airport authorities, Deran Sameer Ahmed fell inside approximately 30 minutes before the flight’s scheduled landing. (Representative image)

An Iraqi Airways flight, flying from Baghdad to Guangzhou in China, was forced to divert to Kolkata on Wednesday night after a 16-year-old girl reportedly fell inside the aircraft. She was later pronounced dead at a Kolkata hospital.

According to the airport authorities, 16-year-old Deran Sameer Ahmed, a resident of Baghdad, fell inside the aircraft just around 30 minutes before the flight’s scheduled landing at Guangzhou.

The flight IA-473, with 100 passengers and 15 crew members on board, was diverted to Kolkata’s Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport where it landed at 10.18 pm.

The girl was rushed to the nearby Charnock Hospital where the doctors declared her dead.

“The girl had no pulse or heartbeat when the aircraft landed in Kolkata. The attending doctor referred her to the nearest hospital for further evaluation. Later, at about 1.18 am, the girl passenger along with two of her immediate family members were offloaded and due formalities were completed,” said an official of the Airports Authority of India (AAI).

The flight departed for China with the rest of the passengers at 1.49 am on Thursday.

Dr Pooja Adhikary, who attended the girl, reported a case of unnatural death at Baguiati police station.

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“The exact cause of death is under investigation,” said an official.

Sweety Kumari

Sweety Kumari reports from West Bengal for The Indian Express. She is a journalist with over a decade of experience in the media industry. Covers Crime, Defence, Health , Politics etc and writes on trending topics. With a keen eye for investigative and human-interest stories. She has honed her craft across diverse beats including aviation, health, incidents etc. Sweety delivers impactful journalism that informs and engages audiences. Sweety Kumari is a graduate of Calcutta University with an Honors degree in Journalism from Jaipuria College and a PG in Mass Communication from Jadavpur University. Originally from Bihar, she is brought up in Kolkata and completed her education from Kendriya Vidyalaya SaltLake. Multilingual, Sweety is fluent in English, Hindi, Bengali, and Maithili. She started her career as an Entertainment and lifestyle journalist with a newsportal in Kolkata. She is working with The Indian Express for 8 years now. ... Read More

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