A woman unexpectedly gave birth to a baby boy on a Frontier Airlines flight to Florida with the help of a flight attendant, prompting a very special middle name for the newborn.
Baby Named Sky Born On Frontier Airlines Flight With Assistance From Flight Attendant
The incident occurred on a recent Frontier Airlines flight from Denver (DEN) to Orlando (MCO).
Here’s how Frontier Airlines described the incident on its Facebook page:
“Exemplary” and “calm” were the words Captain Chris Nye used for Flight Attendant Diana Giraldo’s heroic task of delivering a baby recently mid-flight.
The baby couldn’t wait, so the early and unexpected labor took place on a flight from Denver International Airport to Orlando International Airport (MCO). Diana helped the mother to the back lavatory and assisted the mother in giving birth.
“Diana again went above and beyond after the completion of the flight to coordinate our return to Orlando,” Chris said.
“The whole crew really did a great job. I transferred controls and flying duties to my First Officer as I coordinated the diversion. Dispatch did a great job as well by suggesting Pensacola Airport and getting a gate and paramedics ready for us. This was a job well done, and I was happy to see everyone working together to successfully deliver a newborn on an aircraft!” said Chris.
The mom opted to name the baby’s middle name Sky since she was born on our mother and daughter plane tail, Luna and Lilly the Wolves.
Way to go, Team Frontier!
A nice story and I love that the mother chose “Sky” for the baby’s middle name because of the incident.
But one question. A serious one. Why bring the woman, already in labor, to a tiny lavatory in the rear of the airplane? Sure, I suppose the obvious answer is to protect her dignity and privacy. But really? In a lavatory you can barely stand up in? I would have thought the dignified thing to do would be to clear a row of seats for her, even if a couple other passengers had to stand for a bit or sit in a jumpseat, so she could have a bit more space.
CONCLUSION
Little baby “Sky” was born on a Frontier Airlines flight from Denver to Orlando. Kudos to flight attendant Diana Giraldo for doing a superb job in helping the mother. I’m still curious, though, whether bringing her back to the lavatory was necessary.
images: Frontier Airlines
What tremendous feats human beings are capable of once they abandon dignity.
All pregnant women should have to buy insurance in the last two months of their pregnancy to account for things like this. Every passenger and crew should get at least $500 to compensate for the crap smells related to pregnancy.
Random is starting to grow on me with their common sense takes on the world around us.
Spoiler alert: the baby then got into a fight with another passenger
The rear lav on a Frontier flight to Orlando seems more like a place to conceive a child than to deliver one. Seriously though, I feel bad for the mother and the child… They had to go to Orlando!
Jerry, that’s great material. You need to put that into your act.
In attempting to answer the question posed– why take her to the lavatory– my assumption, which could be wrong of course, is that they didn’t shut the woman in the lavatory for the delivery. That seems quite challenging. Rather I imagine they used the area at the back of the cabin near the lavs, galley, and exits to position the woman so that she could deliver. This would seem easier to me than trying to do this in the seats.
Also when labor starts unexpectedly, sometimes folks don’t immediately know what’s happening. They know something is happening but they’re not sure exactly what, so they head to the bathroom. My sister, for example, who is a doctor, felt like she had gotten food poisoning and was about to get very ill at the onset of her labor (which was not on a plane).
No good deed goes unpunished. …or criticized
I commend Frontier and don’t “punish” it for the great job that was done. I still am curious why she would be moved to the rear lavatory.
Hi Matthew,
I moved her to the aft galley of the aircraft so that we could have enough space for her to be as comfortable as possible & to maneuver should the delivery in fact take place.
Originally she was seated in a cramped row in the middle of the aircraft, so I gave her the option.
The birth happened in the bathroom because she requested to use the toilet to relieve herself before anything else, it just so happened her water broke there & we had to handle it as best as possible with the little time allowed.
1st aid was all administered on the aft galley floor.
Thanks for your comment and kudos to you for stepping up and helping.I’m thankful for wonderful FAs like yourself.
Positioning of Mother for birthing. More room in the lavatory even though they are small, its semi private, water is readily available and emergency kits are located near by. Also its a quick exit area for paramedics with stretcher.
I invite you & your posters to listen to the lyrics of “Ladies Singing Their Song”, from the musical, “Baby”…
In the rear lavatory? There’s barely enough room to relieve yourself!