A British Airways pilot tragically collapsed and died just before he was due to fly a busy plane to London Heathrow.
The man was preparing for the flight back from Cairo, Egypt, when he suffered a heart attack in the crew’s hotel.
He managed to make his way to the hotel lobby where CPR was performed, but they were unable to save his life. A source reportedly told The Sun: “It has rocked BA. It doesn’t bear imagining if he had suffered a heart attack at 30,000ft.”
The pilot’s flight was naturally delayed, with passengers kept in the dark about the true tragic reason behind the wait. The man’s body was unable to be flown back on the original A321 flight as there was no space.
Instead, a larger Dreamliner was flown to Egypt specifically to collect the pilot’s body.
His body will be back to the UK in a Boeing 787 from Egypt with room enough for the coffin in the cargo hold.
It has been reported that the man had been suffering from ill health in the months leading up to his death.
The man’s next of kin have been informed by British Airways. BA said: “Our thoughts are with our colleagues’ friends and family at this very sad time.”
