Man dies on Cathay Pacific flight en route to Hong Kong

An aircraft from Cathay Pacific. Photo from Cathay Pacific's Twitter

The South China Morning Post reported that the flight on which the man was traveling had left Dhaka at 2 a.m. on Wednesday local time and arrived in Hong Kong at 7:49 a.m. that same day. Hong Kong police were notified of the incident shortly after 8 a.m.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene, and an autopsy is planned to determine the exact cause of death.

According to The Standard, the deceased was a teacher who had applied to immigrate to the U.S. He was traveling alone and had a connecting flight to the U.S. planned.

Cathay Pacific expressed deep sorrow over the incident, offering "heartfelt condolences to the passenger’s family" in a statement.

This is not the first such incident on Cathay Pacific flights this month. On Sep. 8, a 71-year-old German passenger died on a flight from Hong Kong to Mumbai. The man collapsed just before takeoff and was declared dead after being transported to the hospital.

In response, the Hong Kong Aircrew Officers Association has encouraged passengers to alert the cabin crew if they feel unwell.

Dr. Yang Siu-ming from the Hong Kong College of Emergency Medicine recommends that individuals with cardiovascular or respiratory diseases consult their doctors before flying. He also suggests that passengers take short walks every one or two hours during long flights to prevent "economy-class syndrome," a condition associated with blood clots formed from prolonged sitting.