London (Parliament Politics Magazine) – A British family faced scrutiny after their elderly grandmother died on a Malaga–London Gatwick easyJet flight, causing a lengthy 12-hour delay.
According to Alejandro Trujillo of Sur in English, an EasyJet flight from Malaga to London Gatwick experienced a shocking incident, as witnesses reported that a British family boarded the plane with their 89-year-old grandmother, who had died, claiming she was asleep.
How did a dead passenger board an easyJet flight from Malaga to London?
According to reports, an 89-year-old woman was taken onto the plane in a wheelchair, with her family telling ground staff she was unwell and had fallen asleep on 18 December.
The Daily Mail reported that several passengers said they observed the family telling the crew that the elderly woman was “just tired” and asserting, “It’s OK, we are doctors,” in an apparent attempt to justify her condition on board.
The family managed to get the elderly woman into a seat at the back of the plane, but moments after 11 am, the crew realized she had died, prompting the aircraft to stop on the runway.
A passenger, Petra Boddington, described her shock over the events on the flight, adding,
“What were the easyJet ground staff thinking today? They asked the family five times if the woman was all right? and clearly she wasn’t!”
Boddington said the woman looked
“already deceased, slumped and unconscious in a wheelchair.”
The passenger indicated that the family might have acted to avoid financial costs, saying,
“Why would she be allowed to board the flight and disrupt everyone’s plans… purely to save the family from repatriation costs? If I was drunk they wouldn’t let me board, but apparently, being dead is fine.”
Tracy-Ann Kitching, another passenger, shared her concerns on social media, highlighting the role of the airline’s special assistance service for passengers needing extra support.
She said,
“I saw her being wheeled onto the plane; someone was holding her head as they passed me! A doctor on board confirmed that was already dead when they sat her down.”
Kitching asked,
“EasyJet – you are unbelievable! Why did you let a dead person on our flight?!”
According to the Guardia Civil in Malaga, their officers attended the aircraft and declared the woman dead on board shortly before its scheduled 11 am departure on Thursday, December 18.
The incident led to a delay of around 12 hours, with the flight eventually departing at 11:47 pm. Authorities confirmed no arrests have been made.
How did EasyJet respond to claims of a passenger dying on board?
A spokesperson for EasyJet rejected claims that the airline allowed a deceased passenger to board, adding that the passenger had a valid fitness-to-fly certificate and was alive when boarding.
They added,
“The flight returned to the stand prior to take-off due to a customer on board requiring urgent medical assistance. The flight was met by the emergency services, but sadly the customer passed away.”
Is it allowed to transport a dead body on an easyJet flight?
easyJet does not allow the transport of uncremated human remains (dead bodies) on any of its routes.
Passengers can transport human or pet ashes in their cabin baggage, provided they have a copy of the death certificate and the cremation certificate.
Transporting a body across borders (repatriation) typically requires specialist casket services on cargo flights, involving complex legal certification and costs often exceeding £3,000.
Aviation rules say flights aren’t required to divert for a presumed dead passenger, only to save a life.
Crew must move the body to a less visible area (like an empty row) and secure it with a seatbelt. The body cannot be stored in galleys or near emergency exits for safety reasons.
