A baby has been born at 33,000ft on a flight to Italy after a mother went into labour two months prematurely. The birth occurred on ITA Airways flight AZ855 from Dakar, Senegal, to Rome Fiumicino on the night of April 29.
Cabin crew were alerted to the situation just an hour after take-off. An improvised birthing room was set up in the galley and in front of the exit, and two passengers – a doctor and a nurse – volunteered to assist the woman, who was seven months pregnant.
Passenger Sandro Pisu, 58, told Italian newspaper Il Messaggero: “I was asleep, but when they asked if a doctor was available, I immediately thought someone had fallen ill. It was all very confusing; the news came in fragments. We couldn’t believe a woman had given birth.”
It took only an hour for the baby boy to be born, and the news was greeted by cheers from the cabin. The plane then returned to Blaise Diagne Airport in Dakar, where the mother and baby were taken to hospital for check-ups.
In a statement on Facebook, the airline said: “A pleasant and unexpected event made ITA Airways’ day. On flight AZ855 that departed from Dakar last night and headed to Rome Fiumicino, an hour after take-off a seven-month pregnant woman gave birth to a baby prematurely. The mother and the baby received immediate assistance from the crew, who demonstrated great professionalism, and two passengers, a doctor and a nurse, to whom the company deserves the most sincere thanks. The baby, in perfect health, is the first baby born on board an aircraft in ITA Airways history.”
Earlier in April, a baby was also born on a Caribbean Airlines flight from Jamaica to New York’s John F Kennedy International Airport, according to a news release from the carrier.
