The sudden death of a veteran flight attendant, who suffered an apparent heart attack, led a Hawaiian Airlines pilot to divert a flight carrying 253 passengers and 12 crew and land at an intermediate point.
Hawaiian Airlines flight 50 from Honolulu to New York City diverted to San Francisco after the male flight attendant died, airline officials said on Friday.
A call for any doctors aboard led to many doctors stepping forward, a passenger said. They attempted in-flight CPR but the San Mateo County coroner declared the crewmember dead on arrival.
News outlets in Hawaii quoted Hawaiian Airlines spokeswoman Ann Botticelli identifying the deceased crewmember as Emile Griffith, who had been with the company for 31 years. Griffith was reportedly well known and respected.
Hawaiian Airlines photo of Emile Griffith
“Emile both loved and treasured his job at Hawaiian and always shared that with our guests,” Botticelli said in a statement.
Griffith’s age was not disclosed.
Below, statement on Twitter by Hawaiian Airlines
Written by Peter Needham
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