42 October 2018 · AV I A T I O N B U S I N E S S http://www.aviationbusinessme.com
Baby delivered on board
Saudia fl ight
On a recent S aud ia fl ight, travelling from
Saudi Arabia to the Philippines, a mother
went into labour while the aircraft was in
mid-fl ight and cruising at a high altitude.
A Riyadh-based doctor who works at
Aster DM Healthcare was present on
the fl ight and volunteered to assist. Dr
Jan Saret, an obstetrics and gynaecology
consultant, initially attempted to stall the
delivery until the fl ight’s scheduled landing
Manila, as the possibility of an emergency
landing was not feasible.
Faced with the possibility of complica-
tions for both the mother and her unborn
ch i ld, however, Dr S a ret made t he dec ision
to force delivery of the baby mid-fl ight.
“When it became evident what we wouldno longer be able to stall the delivery, I
made the decision to put the lives of the
mother and the baby fi rst,” the doctor said
in a statement.
“This was the fi rst time for me to de-
liver a baby under such circumstances
but I can confi dently say that my work at
Aster Sanad and the spirit of going beyond
boundaries to be able to help people in
need, encouraged me to save the mother
and the baby.”
While a miraculous story, the incident
isn’t the fi rst baby del iver y to happ en on a
Saudia fl ight in recent memory. In fact, a
similar incident occurred back on the 23
April 2018, where a baby was delivered on
board a Cairo bound fl ight that originated
from Jeddah.The aircraft was travelling from Saudi Arabia to the
Philippines, when a woman on board went into labourc The incident isn’t the fi rst baby delivery to happen on a Saudia fl ight in recent memory.TRAVELThe Gulf Centre for Aviation Studies
(GCAS) recently hosted 25 students for
two education sessions, which saw stu-
dents take part in a number of work-
shops geared around proactivity
and prioritisation.
Part of The Seven Habits of Highly
Effective Teens programme, the train-
ing is part of Abu Dhabi Airport’s CSR
commitments towards employee
engagement and future Emirati
talent development.
The group, which was comprised
of 12 boys and 13 girls, were primarily
the sons and daughters of Abu Dhabi
Airports’ staff.
The training was conducted by a
GCAS in-house instructor who is certi-
fi ed by Franklin Covey.
“We are highly encouraged by the
level of participation from the 25
students we hosted here today. All of
them brought an exceptional level of
interest, inquisitiveness and energy,
demonstrating the signifi cant poten-
tial present throughout the upcoming
generation,” commented Sultan Al
Mansouri, General Manager of the Gulf
Centre for Aviation Studies.
“Abu Dhabi Airports is committed
to ensuring the development of our
employees. This initiative represents an
extension of our obligation to staff and
their families, and comes as a manifes-
tation of our responsibilities towards
broader society,” he added.GCAS focuses on
youth development
The organisation recently
hosted 25 students for two
education sessionsc The training was done by a GCAS instructor.‘Bleeding’ passengers forces return of plane
Jet Airways fl ight returned to Mumbai after 30 passengers reported bleeding from the ear and nose
AV I AT ION PA R T N E R S