Frequent fliers may already know this.
I was flying across the country this weekend and the flight attendant got on the PA system and said, “Is anybody on the plane a doctor?”
I thought that only happened in movies.
A woman who has diabetes fainted in the aisle.
Luckily there were two doctors. After an hour or so of sitting with the woman in the isle, one of the doctors walked to the front of the plane and picked up the red phone. I am guessing he was talking to the pilots and telling them that she was in stable enough shape to finish out the flight, meaning we did not divert to the nearest airport.
I have never seen so much rubber-necking.
And that got me wondering, how sick does someone have to be for a plane to be diverted? And who pays for the extra fuel costs? Does the airline bill the sick passenger’s health insurance?
It also made me think that I doubt a flight attendant has ever gotten on and asked, “Is anybody on the plane a journalist?”
That’s a great question. I’m looking forward to the answer. A similar situation happened while in flight recently. THe flight attendant knew that the gentlemen next to me was a doctor and she sought him out immediately. After returning to his seat, he shared that this happens quite frequently because people who have fallen ill while away want to get home to their personal physicians so they fly against medical advice. Makes you wonder why there aren’t more planes diverted?