India: IndiGo pilot collapses and dies at boarding gate before operating flight to Pune

An IndiGo pilot collapsed and died at the boarding gate of Nagpur Airport in India, just as he was about to board an aircraft to fly it to Pune. The incident transpired on Thursday (August 17) and the deceased pilot has been identified as 40-year-oldCaptain Manoj Subramanyam.

The KIMS-Kingsway Hospital whereSubramanyam was admitted saidprime facie, it appears that he suffered a suspected sudden cardiac arrest, according tonews agency Press Trust of India (PTI).

Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the regulatory body said the pilot was well-rested prior to the flight despite having operated on two sectors on Wednesday (August 16).

“The pilot had on Wednesday (Aug 16) operated two sectors -Trivandrum-Pune-Nagpur -early morning, between 3 am and 7 am. Thereafter he had 27 hours of rest and was scheduled to operate four sectors on Thursday with departure at 1 pm. Departure from Nagpur was to be his first sector of the day," a senior DGCA official was quoted as saying by Times of India newspaper.

After the incident, IndiGo released a statement and paid condolences to the family of the deceased.

“We are saddened at the passing of one of our pilots in Nagpur earlier today. He took unwell at Nagpur airport and was rushed to the hospital where he unfortunately passed away. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and loved ones.”

Despite the pilot's death, the IndiGo flight took off at 1:24 pm after 14 minutes of delay from its scheduled departure.

A similar incident in the US

This is the second instance of a pilot succumbing to death while on board a flight or about to chauffeur it. On Sunday (August 13),Captain Ivan Andaur operating ascheduled LATAM Airlines flight from Miami to Santiago in Chile died, three hours after takeoff.Andaur went to the bathroom where he collapsed, forcing his co-pilots to take over the cockpit and make an emergency landingPanama City's Tocumen International Airport.

Unfortunately, the medical teams declared Andaur dead when the plane arrived in Panama City. He had 25 years of service flying for LATAM.

"LATAM Airlines Group reports that flight LA505 yesterday, which was on the Miami-Santiago route, had to land at the Tocumen International Airport in Panama due to a medical emergency for one of the three members of the command crew," the airlines said in a statement.

(With inputs from agencies)

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