China airliner dumps 30 tons of fuel mid-flight to save passenger’s life

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One pilot for the China Eastern Airlines decided to dump 30 tons of fuel in mid-air to enable the plane to  land safely to save a passenger’s life.

A 60-year-old unidentified woman complained of breathing difficulties while on board the plane from Shanghai, China, en route to New York Friday night. In a report by CGTN , it could be seen that she was being tended to by airline crew aboard the flight.

She was then transferred from economy class to business class to let the crew perform first aid on her, Chinese media UDN.com through The Straits Times reported.

In a further bid to save her life, the pilot, Gu Jian, decided to discharge fuel so it could land at the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport in Alaska.

“The airplane’s weight was 282 tons, far more than the maximum landing weight,” Jian explained to CGTN. “When the sick passenger needed medical attention for safety reasons, the plane had to descend and dump gasoline at the same time.”

After the procedure was done, the woman was rushed to a local hospital.

One passenger, identified as Ivy, praised Jian’s actions for the emergency landing, as saving lives should be a priority, the UDN.com report said.

The plane then refueled, took off and safely landed in New York after a six-hour delay.

Meanwhile, the woman has been discharged and she and her daughter went on with their trip the next morning.  Katrina Hallare /ra

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