Sri Lankan passenger dies in Erbil after plane’s emergency landing

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A Sri Lankan woman with health issues caused a plane to make an emergency landing at the Erbil International Airport on Wednesday. She died in the Kurdish capital hours later, according to Sri Lanka’s honorary consul. 

Ahmed Jalal, the honorary consul of Sri Lanka in Erbil, said on Thursday that they were contacted by the Kurdistan Region’s relevant authorities who informed them that a Sri Lankan woman was onboard a plane from Doha to Paris. 

“An emergency happened inside the plane. Apparently, they [the pilot] informed Erbil airport, requesting a landing. The plane arrived at Erbil airport at 5:40pm,” he added, elaborating that medical teams arrived to provide assistance but the woman died onboard. 

She was 81 years old and lived in France. The Sri Lankan consulate reached out to her son, who is a French citizen and has called on the Kurdish authorities to help transport his mother’s dead body to Paris, according to Jalal. 

“This is the first time such a case has happened,” he noted. 
 
The plane belongs to Qatar Airways, according to a Sri Lankan aviation news outlet. The airline is yet to comment on the incident.