Frances Leate
A RYANAIR flight from Lanzarote to Bristol took a dramatic turn for the worst when a female passenger suffered a heart attack on board.
If it hadn’t have been for the quick-thinking actions of teenage air steward, Luke Rexworthy, the passenger would have died say the budget airline.
Mr Rexworthy, 19, gave the woman the kiss of life and oxygen from the onboard emergency kit when she collapsed.
A nurse on the flight joined the rescue attempt which went on for half an hour as the plane made an emergency landing in Seville.
Luke is now about to receive a top national life-saving honour from the Royal Humane Society and has already been presented with a Ryanair Excellence Award in Dublin.
The teenager, who has worked for the low-cost airline for two years, said: “I was doing a service in the middle of the cabin when I heard a call bell.
“A lady was sick and I attended to her. She then stopped breathing.
“I put her in the recovery position and alerted other crew and a nurse came to assist and we commenced resuscitation.
“I did CPR as part of my training, but this was the first time anything like this happened to me on board.”
He added: “Doing it in real life is a bit different, but thankfully the training kicked in.”
The passenger, who was taken to hospital as soon as the plane landed in Seville, has since made a complete recovery.
Robin Kiely, from Ryanair, said: “Ryanair cabin crew are proficient in first aid thanks to their training, however very few ever have to implement the skills they have learned.
“We are extremely proud of Luke for his outstanding actions in saving a passenger’s life.”
Isn’t this what airline cabin crew are trained and employed for ?
Well done Luke and Ryanair.
A good news story from Ryan Air who always provide me with a efficient service at affordable prices. Well done.
Well done Luke. This training is normal and worldwide for aircrew, It’s his obvious personal integrity and sense of responsibility that saved the day. Its a pity Ryanair don’t operate with the same level of simple humanity toward their pilots and clients. That is my personal opinion only, but very representative of everyone I ever spoke to regarding this airline.