Air India pilots save passenger's life during flight

Alert pilots of Air India flight from Bangkok to Mumbai made an unscheduled landing at Kolkata airport on Wednesday to respond to an on-board medical emergency, an airline official said Friday.

"He (Captain Sarabjeet Singh) told the ATC (air traffic control) that a passenger's condition was serious and requested for a medical team to be on standby," the Air India official said.

"Soon after, the pilot again radioed the ATC that the passenger's condition was deteriorating fast and he sought immediate advice from the doctors over the very high frequency (VHF)."

According to the airline official, the pilots' presence of mind and immediate action resulted in an uncommon situation where Airports Authority of India (AAI) doctors were taken to the ATC tower and interacted with the pilot to advise the best possible emergency treatment that could help the passenger till the plane landed.

The flight with 244 passengers, made an emergency landing at Kolkata airport and the sick passenger was rushed to a local hospital. The flight left for Mumbai soon after midnight.