Mabrouk Is In The Air: Flight crew of MEA helped deliver a baby mid-flight

Going into labor mid-flight is not a rare happening — especially on flights from cities in the Arab world. A woman on board a Middle East Airlines (MEA) flight en route from Doha to Beirut recently delivered a baby girl up in the air, Annahar newspaper reported. 

A Filipina woman reportedly went into labor while she was inside the aircraft's toilet. Cabin crew rushed to help her and informed the flight's pilot who then diverted the plane to land in Kuwait International Airport. But, the baby was born before the plane reached the Gulf country.

It was clear to those around the woman that she was going to give birth before the aircraft could land anywhere. Her child was delivered by the MEA flight crew who followed procedures put in place for such incidents.  

In a statement to press, MEA's chairperson Mohammad Al Hout, hailed the flight's pilot and crew for professionally handling the situation. 

"We're proud of the crew, their high level of training and the way they acted. They proved their compassion, professionalism and drive which is of utmost importance," he said. 

Some on social media claimed that the child was delivered by an obstetrician who happened to be on the flight. However, this information remains unconfirmed. Others questioned how the woman boarded the flight if she was this far in her pregnancy. In response to that, people said she could've gone into early labor.

In 2017, a baby boy was born on Emirates flight EK075 en route from Dubai to Paris. The airline was forced to make an emergency landing at Larnaka airport in Cyprus to accommodate the new mom and her child. 

"We have supported the passenger during this period and her health and safety has of course been paramount," a spokesperson for the airline said at the time. 

In 2016, a Saudi Arabian Airlines flight from Jeddah had to make an unexpected stop in London when a Saudi woman went into labor en route to New York.

Though no gynecologists or obstetricians were on board, flight attendants assisted the mother to deliver a healthy baby girl.

Similar births have also been reported on Middle Eastern flights in recent years. In April 2017, the cabin crew of Turkish Airlines assisted a passenger, Nafi Diaby, in delivering a baby girl — 12,800 meters up in the air.