This is not the first time Vietnam Airlines decided to adjust its flight operation plan for passengers’ health. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Vietnam Airlines Flight VN30 was forced to make an unscheduled landing at Baku Heydar Aliyev in Azerbaijan on Friday, due to a passenger’s medical emergency. 

The passenger is an 18-year-old German identified as A.Y. 

The flight crew immediately called for help from a doctor and a nurse on board to perform first aid, but the patient’s condition did not improve. 

After discussing with Vietnam Airlines’ operations executive board, the crew decided to make a landing at the nearest airport, Baku Heydar Aliyev, at 0.15am Friday (Việt Nam time). 

The plane had been 4 hours and 35 minutes into its journey from Frankfurt (Germany) to HCM City when the landing took place.

The airline has contacted and worked closely with the ground services at Baku Heydar Aliyev to assist the patient in immigration procedures, obtaining a visa and transport to an emergency room. 

Vietnam Airlines also worked with the airport to assign a staff to accompany A.Y to the hospital and follow updates on the patient’s health condition. 

The German embassy in Azerbaijan and the passenger’s family were also informed of the case.

Flight VN30 then continued its journey at 3.38am and landed in HCM City at 11.45am, nearly four hours behind schedule. 

This is not the first time Vietnam Airlines decided to adjust its flight operation plan for passengers’ health. 

In 2019, the airline’s flight VN337 from Osaka (Japan) to Đà Nẵng made an emergency landing when a two-year-old passenger experienced high fever, convulsions, breathing difficulties and had gone into a coma. 

In the same year, its flight VN63 from Hà Nội to Moscow (Russia) faced the same situation when a passenger onboard had abnormal stomach pain with haemorrhage. 

Recently, in August 2022, flight VN384 from Hà Nội to Tokyo (Japan) decided to turnaround and return to Nội Bài International Airport after a young Japanese passenger experienced non-stop bleeding. 

The emergency landing is crucial to the passenger’s life in these situations, requiring thorough consideration and prompt decisions from the crew and the airline. 

It also costs a significant amount of resources for the airline in terms of rescheduling, refuelling, ground services and compensation for passengers. — VNS