A Bangladeshi traveller has given birth to a baby while aboard a domestic flight in Saudi Arabia.
The woman, in her thirties, was a passenger on a Saudia plane en route from the north-western city of Tabuk to the port city of Jeddah last Friday when she unexpectedly went into labour, as reported by the Saudi news portal Sabq.
At an altitude of 36,000 feet, the woman sought assistance from the flight crew.
Among the passengers were two football teams accompanied by medical professionals. They, along with the help of another passenger who could translate medical instructions, played a crucial role in ensuring the safe delivery of the baby, according to the Saudi news site Akhbar24.
For the safety of the newborn, the doctors chose not to sever the baby's umbilical cord until the aircraft landed at the nearest gate at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, where emergency medical assistance could be provided to the mother.
Saudi female medics, specially trained to handle in-flight emergencies, were promptly dispatched to offer the necessary care to the mother and her newborn daughter.
Once the medical team ensured that both were in stable condition, they were transferred to a local hospital.
King Abdulaziz Airport recently became the first in the kingdom to deploy women medics to handle emergency cases.
As part of their training, these medics completed a comprehensive three-month course, combining theoretical and practical elements, to qualify them for dealing with emergency and critical situations among airport passengers, particularly those undertaking the annual Hajj pilgrimage and Umrah.
