Delta Air Lines Passenger Dies on Nigeria-Atlanta Flight

A woman died on a Delta Air Lines flight from Nigeria to Atlanta on Monday, it has been revealed. Although the airline couldn’t identify the woman, Georgia Bureau of Investigation spokesman John Bankhead says that it was 57-year-old Aolatou Assani.

Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen has confirmed that the woman was found dead on the Boeing 777 operated by Delta Air Lines for a Lagos, Nigeria to Atlanta flight. The plane landed without any problems on Monday at 5am after it was reported by the pilot that a passenger died on the flight. The nonstop service was a 12-hour flight, and the woman died only 1 hour from landing.

Susan Elliott, a spokeswoman for Delta Air Lines, initially stated that they were working with medical authorities to get the facts. Otis Redmond, a spokesman for Atlanta police, confirmed that there was no foul play suspected. Because the death happened on an international flight, the FBI was also involved in the investigation briefly, but then it was turned backed to local authorities. Later, Bankhead revealed that Assani had been battling diffuse, metastatic ovarian cancer. She was traveling with her son, he added.

Passengers dying on flights isn’t an everyday thing, but it does happen. In just the last week, a male passenger on an AirTran Airways flight from Las Vegas to Milwaukee died. The 64-year-old had a history of heart problems and had a heart attack during the journey with his wife. The flight had to be diverted to Denver due to the incident, during which a passenger used CPR and the crew used a portable defibrillator in unsuccessful attempts to revive him.