Nagpur: What began as an ordinary evening flight turned into a scene of heartbreak on Wednesday, as an IndiGo aircraft en route from Ghaziabad to Chennai was forced to make an emergency landing at Nagpur, only for the desperate race against time to end in loss.
Flight 6E 2579 was diverted after a 65-year-old passenger suddenly collapsed mid-air, complaining of intense chest pain and breathlessness. Despite swift action by the cabin crew and fellow passengers, life slipped away before medical help could reach him on the ground.
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Mar 13 2026 - Time 11.45Hrs
The aircraft departed from Hindon Airport in Ghaziabad at 4.24 pm and was scheduled to land in Chennai around 7 pm. The deceased, identified as Uttam Jain, was travelling with his wife and son. Family members said he had shown no signs of illness before boarding, making the sudden medical crisis all the more devastating.
Midway through the journey, Jain’s condition deteriorated rapidly. Alarmed by his distress, his family alerted the cabin crew, who immediately began emergency procedures. First aid was administered and CPR performed inside the aircraft, as fellow passengers watched in anxious silence.
As his condition worsened, the pilot declared a medical emergency and sought permission for an immediate diversion. Around 6 pm, Air Traffic Control cleared the aircraft to land at Nagpur, where an ambulance and a team of doctors from KIMS Kingsway Hospital were rushed to the runway in anticipation.
But when the plane touched down, the battle was already lost. Doctors boarded the aircraft moments later, only to confirm that Jain had succumbed before treatment could begin, said Ejaz Shami, head of branding and communications at KIMS Kingsway Hospitals.
The sudden death cast a pall over the aircraft and the airport terminal alike. The body was later shifted to Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) for a post-mortem examination. Authorities said the death is being treated as natural, pending confirmation of the exact cause in the autopsy report, according to Dr Avinash Gawande, Superintendent, GMCH.
For a family that had boarded the flight with routine travel plans, the journey ended in unimaginable grief, a stark reminder of how fragile life can be, even at 35,000 feet.
