by Donald Wood
Last updated: 11:26 AM ET, Mon May 3, 2021
A woman successfully gave birth to a baby boy during a flight to Hawaii thanks to the help of several doctors and nurses who were also passengers on the plane.
According to KHON2.com, a Delta Air Lines flight from Salt Lake City, Utah, to Oahu, Hawaii, on April 28 was forced to divert to Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu after a medical situation took place onboard.
A Kansas City nurse named Lani Summer Bamfield shared in a Facebook post that she helped deliver a baby in the bathroom of her Delta flight while the plane was over the ocean.
Bamfield said it was three hours before the plane could make a safe landing, but thanks to the quick work of "three NICU nurses, a physician's assistant and a family medicine doctor," the child and his mother were doing well.
United States Department of Transportation spokesperson Jai Cunningham told KHON2.com, "the pilot and crew followed protocol and alerted them of the situation prior to landing."
"It was a medical assist, it wasn't deemed a medical emergency so that sort of notifies you that mom and baby were in good shape," Cunningham said. "Then the crew emergency medical services group met them and were able to transport them to a nearby hospital."
A Delta Air Lines spokesperson confirmed the baby was born aboard their fight.
"The safety of our crew and customers is our top priority," the spokesperson told KHON2.com. "Our crews are well trained to manage a number of onboard medical scenarios. Every aircraft is equipped with medical equipment and crews have access to expert counsel during flight when an issue occurs."
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