Among all the doom and gloom of the aviation industry nowadays, there are still some happy moments. One such occurred on IndiGo flight yesterday from Delhi to Bangalore, where a woman gave birth to a baby boy on the flight. The mother and child are doing fine, and the IndiGo crew’s assistance and celebration of the birth have since gone viral.
Birth onboard
A unique surprise occurred on an IndiGo flight 6E 122 from Delhi to Bangalore yesterday. The flight departed from Delhi at 17:13 and landed on time in Bangalore at 19:32 local time, with little delay, according to FlightRadar24.
However, onboard there was quite the event after a woman gave birth to a baby boy sometime during the flight. The mother and child are doing well and are healthy, the top priority in this unusual situation, according to Zee News.
A baby boy was born in an IndiGo Delhi- Bangalore flight
Both mother & child are doing fine #aviation pic.twitter.com/9hlCh0f9zy
— Arindam Majumder (@ari_maj) October 7, 2020
IndiGo crew reportedly assisted during the birth and have won praise for their assistance. The airline also celebrated and planned for the arrival of the baby, with an ambulance ready on the tarmac and ground teams standing-by, applauding the mother and baby boy.
Photos taken onboard show doctors monitoring the baby and crew taking pictures with the new arrival on the flight. IndiGo staff in Bangalore also prepared a poster welcoming the baby to Bangalore, all while the plane was in the air!
A baby boy was born on board Indigo flight from Delhi to Bangalore today. In all likely baby is getting life long free @IndiGo6E free ticket. Great work by Indigo crew today. Kudos to the team @IndiaToday pic.twitter.com/mxn16dgigf
— Nagarjun Dwarakanath (@nagarjund) October 7, 2020
Free tickets for life?
While births onboard are dramatic events, they aren’t uncommon. Many babies are born on flights every year, including many on international flights. Back in May, a baby was born on Emirates flight to Nigeria. Airlines usually divert when such an event occurs so that the baby and child can immediately receive professional medical help.
Some airlines go an extra step and offer the baby free flights on the airline for the rest of their life to celebrate the unique event. Jet Airways famously offered a baby born on one of its flight free flights for life in 2017, as did AirAsia in 2009.
Some are speculating that IndiGo will do the same, yet the airline is yet to confirm anything. While this is a big PR boost, many airlines do not advertise such a policy or offer such a scheme. We will have to wait and see if IndiGo decides to offer the baby such privileges.
Citizenship question
This IndiGo flight was a domestic one, which means the child will be an Indian citizen if his parents are Indian. However, babies born on international flights may have citizenship questions depending on where they were born.
Some countries, such as the US, consider all births in 12 nautical miles of their airspace as being US citizens, under jus soli. However, in most cases, the child acquires the citizenship of their parents under the principle of jus sanguinis.
While we do not know the baby’s name yet, he is already a part of a very exclusive club! We wish the mother and baby a speedy recovery!
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