Saudi Airlines passenger flight turns around after mother forgets and leaves her baby at airport
A plane was forced to turn back after a mother left her baby in the terminal. The Saudi Airlines jet was headed for Kuala Lumpur when the mother realized her blunder and demanded that she be let off the aircraft and be reunited with her baby.
As reported by the Gulf news, audio clips show the pilot requesting air traffic controllers for permission to turn back to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. The woman had left the child behind in the departure lounge at King Abdul Aziz International Airport.
The clip has now gone viral on social media and the pilot can be heard asking air traffic control staff members, "May God be with us. Can we come back or what?" After they noted the flight number SV832, the operator asks a colleague as to what protocol to follow or if there ever was one.
The pilot further adds, "This flight is requesting to come back… a passenger forgot her baby in the waiting area, the poor thing." The air traffic control asks the pilot to confirm the story to which he replied, "We told you, a passenger left her baby in the terminal and refuses to continue the flight."
The operator then gave the plane permission to turn back and return to King Abdul Aziz International Airport. He then added, "Okay, head back to the gate. This is totally a new one for us!" The pilot received a lot of praise for considering the situation to be an "emergency" and was applauded on his humanity for agreeing to return to the airport.
The incident reportedly took place on Saturday evening and flight radar websites record a delay of the 54-minute flight but did not reveal whether the plane turned back mid-air or whether they were preparing for take-off. The circumstances under which the passenger left her baby in the terminal are currently unclear.
The original audio file of the incident had been shared by a Saudi Twitter user Fahad M. Al Barrak claimed that the mother had not just left the baby in the terminal by itself. He claims that the baby had been with its sister who had accidentally boarded the wrong bus at the terminal and missed the flight. When the mother realized that the children were not on the flight, she insisted that the plane turn around.
"Passenger jet 'turns around and returns to Saudi airport after mother FORGETS her baby and leaves it behind'"!
— Kenna Haile (@HaileKenna) March 12, 2019
I'm not judging. But this is bizarre! I don't know if she is capable of being a mom! Being a mother is more than just about giving birth! https://t.co/oJ3uPhfTin
