Man collapses when wife is in the bathroom and flight crew fail to resuscitate him. But when she comes back, she allegedly kicks him: ‘Showing me up’

BBC radio broadcaster Luke Jones recently interviewed three former cabin crew members to discuss bad passenger behavior on flights. Then during their conversation, one of his guests shared a story that shocked him. Luke then uploaded it to Instagram and TikTok. As he noted in his caption, it was “Extreeeemely bad behaviour on flight.” Unsurprisingly, the post went on to get over 362K views. 

The inspiration for this discussion was a BBC report about a Canadian flight that had to be canceled because a child refused to sit down. He told his viewers, “We’ve all heard about rudeness on flights, drunkenness, nakedness even.” Then he told everyone to brace for the story he heard. The clip then cut to an image of his broadcast booth, and you hear the crew member claim, “Unfortunately, I had a passenger die on a plane.” 

Luke immediately noted, “Oh, my gosh. Is that bad behavior? I’m not sure it is.” So the crew member wryly alleged, “Well, it was his wife was the bad behavior?” The cabin crew noted, “From the moment she got on the plane, she was screaming and complaining and moaning, and he kept apologizing for her.” When the wife went to the bathroom, the man was served coffee, which is when he collapsed.

Everything fell apart quickly

The guest told Luke, “ We tried to resuscitate him in the aisle. We didn’t have a doctor on board. We diverted.” When the wife finally returned, the crew member tried to call her into the galley for a private conversation. Instead, the woman purportedly “walked up to the passenger on the floor, kicked him and said, ‘get up, you’re showing me up.’” The crew member noted that by that point, the entire plane wanted to kill her. Somehow, it got worse. 

The guest alleged, “When we landed, the body was taken off. It was distressing for us, for all the passengers. And she refused to get off. She said, ‘I have a Holiday to go on. You sort my husband out.’” The crew member didn’t know what to do and went to the captain, where she was allegedly told, “She has the right to travel, she has a ticket.” So, the airlines organized for the body to get taken back to Gatwick. 

According to her, the flight onwards was tense. She claimed, “People would go past her and say disgusting things, and it was horrible. It was a really bad flight. Well, when he went off, I actually touched his hand and said, peace and quiet at last. God bless, because she was horrible.” The crew member’s claims shouldn’t be treated as verified fact since we only have her perspective.

Across social media, Luke’s viewers were shaken. One Instagrammer noted, “what a story!” On TikTok, a user wrote, “That man died from stress of being in an abusive marriage, I hope his family see this.” Another simply noted, “My jaw DROPPED.” 

Other crew members weighed in. Some were shocked, with one remarking, “As a cabin crew member for 40 years I have seen and heard it all. But this… next level. I think our company would’ve kicked the woman out. Ticket or not.” Another noted, “As cabin crew, I can say I am not surprised.” In another case of bad behaviour, the flight attendant went on to become the hook to a dnb track.

Dealing with an in-flight death is a logistical nightmare for the crew. According to BBC News, it is overwhelming for cabin crew. They go from a service role to lifesaving duties, mortuary tasks, and crowd control, all while maintaining safety.

Per the report, a study from the New England Journal of Medicine in 2013 noted that only 0.3% of medical emergencies in-flight result in deaths. Last year, an American Airlines passenger died when his distress wasn’t recognized. When a death does occur, the procedure is specific. 

Flight crew reportedly cannot certify a death, which must be done by medical personnel, either on board or upon landing. International Air Transport Association (IATA) guidelines suggest that if a passenger is presumed dead, they should be covered with a blanket up to the neck or placed in a body bag. However, since space on planes is so confined, finding a place for the body is a major challenge. 

Experts note that it is often necessary to leave the body in a seat. This means there is no room to shield other passengers from the reality of the situation. BBC noted that crew members can’t do much more than try to use curtains or dim lights. Additionally, even for crew, witnessing a death is often a harrowing, traumatic experience. The experience can then become worse when passengers aren’t understanding of the situation.