All kinds of accidents and tragic incidents can take place on a plane, in fact, there have been cases where people have suddenly lost their lives while flying to another destination. But, ever wondered what happens to their bodies?
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This flight attendant revealed exactly how the crew handles the situation while speaking on News.co.au’s podcast called I’ve Got News For You.
Death onboard
If you’re on a plane and the person next to you happens to drop dead, you should know that the body is probably going to be beside you at least while you’re landing. Brieana Young, who is a flight attendant with Virgin Australia, revealed:
We want to be as respectful as possible if that [death on board] actually happens.
They are put in their seat especially for landing to make sure they are secured in the aircraft.
A TikTok user and flight attendant (as confirmed by Business Insider) who goes by the name of Sheena-Marie also talked about her experience with passenger death on a plane earlier this year. Like Young, she explained that in most cases, if the passenger is confirmed dead, they will leave them at their seat as there is usually no space on the flight to move their body. She added:
If there’s enough room on the plane, like one of the back rows is open, we’ll move the body to the back row and we’ll try to lay them down and cover them with a blanket.
Crime scene
According to Young, death on board can also be a trialling period for the rest of the passengers, not only because they have the trauma of sharing a flight with a deceased person, but also because the aircraft is treated as a ‘crime scene’ as soon as they reach the destination. She said:
But what is interesting with that is when the aircraft does land it is considered a crime scene.
So the police come on and assess the whole aircraft and the passengers.
So if that [death on board] ever happens on your flight, expect to be there for a little while after you land.
