Despite rules on pregnant women being permitted to travel by air in their last trimester of pregnancy, the stress of flying can sometimes trigger early labour, leading to rare mid-flight births.
This was the case on a recent Hi Fly flight from Dzaoudzi, a commune in the French overseas department of Mayotte, to the Kenyan capital of Nairobi. Described by the airline in an Instagram post as a “miraculous moment”, a baby boy was safely born prematurely aboard the Airbus A330, registered CS-TCE.
Luckily for the woman, who was travelling with her young doctor, not only were there three doctors aboard the same flight, but one of them was even an obstetrician. Assisted by the cabin crew, they all helped the woman through a safe delivery. The family of the three was taken into care by health professionals waiting for them upon landing in Nairobi.
“Huge thanks to our incredible, well-trained cabin crew who responded swiftly and worked alongside 3 doctors (one being an obstetrician) who happened to be on board as passengers,” the airline wrote on social media. “Despite the intense situation, our crew kept everything running smoothly, and their collective expertise ensured the safety and comfort of both mother and premature newborn.”
The newborn is doing perfectly well, and we wish him a lifetime of happiness!
Hi Fly Airline
Although last year two on-board births happened within two weeks of each other, on VierJet and Wizz Air flights, it’s rare that babies are born on planes due to rules about pregnant women flying in their third trimester. According to a 2020 study, published by the International Society of Travel Medicine, 74 children were born on commercial flights between 1929 and 2018, of which all but three survived.
The rules on flying while pregnant are hard to navigate because of the huge variety from carrier to carrier, with some requiring a doctor’s certificate to fly after a certain number of weeks’ pregnancy, and others applying different conditions. It’s unsurprising therefore that the overall result is to discourage women near the point of labour from flying.
