A British Airways flight to Cayman was delayed in the Bahamas after a passenger on board died.
The London-Nassau-Cayman flight was held at the Lynden Pindling International Airport on Saturday, 11 Oct. for more than three hours after a woman became ill.
A medical team worked on the passenger for almost an hour after the plane landed, but the woman was pronounced dead.
Sarah Dobbyn-Thomson, a barrister and managing director of a Cayman legal firm, said the aircraft arrived in Cayman close to four hours late.
She said, “In all the years of travelling between London and Cayman, the death of a passenger en route and the BA plane being declared a crime scene in Nassau is a new experience for me.”
She added, passengers were glad when they finally reached Grand Cayman.
Dobbyn-Thomson said, “Everyone on the flight looked exhausted. One passenger from France on the flight, which had left Heathrow on 10 Oct., told me it had taken him over two days to get to Cayman.”
She added, the aircraft had been declared a crime scene by Bahamas police after the death and passengers and crew were ordered to remain on board while officers investigated.
Dobbyn-Thomson said, “The flight crew were unable to provide any further information as to how long this would take.
“We watched as medics came and went and then Bahamian police officers came and went.”
All the passengers in economy were moved forward to seats in premium economy, business and first-class seats while police examined the cabin.
She said most Nassau-bound passengers were allowed off the plane about 40 minutes after the medics arrived.
The remaining passengers scheduled to disembark were told they could leave after about three hours.
Dobbyn-Thomson said, “We did not see the body of the deceased being taken from the plane so the rear exit must have been used.”
She added that some of the passengers stranded in Nassau after the previous day’s BA flight was hit by lightning also boarded the Boeing 777 for the last leg of the journey.
Dobbyn-Thomson said the plane was further delayed for about 40 minutes because a luggage discrepancy was identified and BA had to resolve the situation before the aircraft could take off.
The Royal Bahamas Police Force and the airport have been contacted for comment.
BA jet struck by lightning the day before
On Friday, 10 Oct. a BA plane was struck by lightning as it approached Nassau.
Passengers were stuck on the plane for three hours before they were allowed off and later told the aircraft could not continue.
Passenger Paul Deegan said a BA employee showed him a photograph of the left wing and engine, which was peppered with small holes.
He said it took five hours before passengers were told the jet would not be flying and they were taken to a hotel.
Deegan was among a group of 38 passengers who were able to travel on the Saturday flight.
Others were booked to travel through the US on Saturday or had to wait for the BA flight on Monday, 13 Oct.
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The Bahamian police need to justify why the plane was declared a crime scene. Death of a passenger on long haul flights is not unusual, but I have never heard of one being declared a crime scene.