A 20hr flight worth a life

Have you ever been on a 20 hr flight? And yes, with no breaks, and no transfers. I happened to be on a flight from New Delhi to Newark this weekend which turned out to be a 20 hr journey. But, at the end of it we were left with a strange sense of fulfillment.

“We have a medical emergency on the flight. The flight is being diverted to Stockholm” announced the flight attendant. I woke up as these words started ringing into my ears. My first reaction was a very confusing one. I didn’t know how to react. I was trying to find out what was the medical emergency. At the same time I was disgusted at the thought of more delays on a 14hr flight which had already started with a 3hr delay. As the plane landed in Stockholm I saw a good 6-12” snow covering on the runway. It was pitch dark outside and the landing amidst snow made a great sight. This did help in soothing my ruffled feathers due to the delays. I was even wondering if we could set out and just play with the snow. However, we were instructed to be seated on the plane. I looked around to see the source of the medical emergency. I saw a boy around 5-6 yrs old having respiratory problems. There was a sense of concern and anxiety in general. There were a couple of passengers who were either doctors or had some background in medical emergencies. They were helping the boy. The parents of this boy were, to my surprise, very composed. Soon the paramedics arrived and the boy along with family was taken out. We heard that that the boy was doing better. There was a big applause and a huge sense of relief.

I saw great bonding among people of different countries, communities and diverse background on the plane. People exchanging thoughts on how to treat the medical problem, the need to exercise restraint and have patience, parents pacifying infants and more. How easy it was to unite for a cause? Effortless, I would say. Many of us would have missed important business meetings, connecting flights and much more. However, just to be a part of a life saving experience like this was something very unique. A lot of credit for saving the kid goes to the airlines but it was good to see the people rally around. A human life is still valued and we do think alike even though we are different.