"I want her parents to know": Fellow Qantas passenger reveals final moments of young woman
The passenger who was seated next to the woman who tragically died after boarding a Qantas flight has broken his silence on her last moments.
Ravinder Singh was seated next to Manpreet Kaur, who passed away shortly after boarding a flight from Melbourne to Delhi on June 20th.
The 24-year-old student, who had dreams of becoming a chef, was travelling to see her parents in India for the first time in four years, but did not make it to her destination.
Now, Ravinder Singh has shared details on her final moments in the hopes it will bring her grieving parents some comfort.
“I was sitting next to her on the Qantas flight from Melbourne to Delhi and was actually the last person to talk to her,” Ravinder Singh exclusively told news.com.au.
“When I boarded the plane, she was already seated in the aisle. I was in the window, so I asked if she could please get up so I could occupy my seat.
“I noticed that she began scrolling through photos on her mobile phone and stopped at a photograph of an elderly couple. I asked if they were her parents. She smiled and nodded and kept staring at it.”
Mr Singh, who had been in Australia to visit family, said that everything seemed fine and the plane eventually began moving towards the runway, ready for take off.
He explained that Ms Kaur had then put her phone down and rested her head on the seat in front, when he realised something was not right.
“She was wearing her seatbelt and leaned forward to rest her head on the seat in front. As the plane was preparing for takeoff, I wanted to alert her to sit upright,” he shared.
“But the plane jerked and I expected her to wake up. But instead, her head just moved towards me."
“I got the attention of a flight attention and told her that this woman does not seem very well. She checked her pulse and after that, the reaction of the cabin crew was very commendable."
“They tried their best to revive her. She was then evacuated by medical staff.”
The retired army officer said the incident still “haunts him” and he wants her parents to know that she “left the world peacefully”.
“The incident has been etched in my memory for life,” he said.
“It is very difficult to digest that a young girl with whom you were just interacting with has passed away in front of your eyes."
“Her innocent face stills haunts me and I want her parents to know she loved them a lot. She left this world peacefully looking at their photograph."
“My heart breaks for her family who would have been looking forward to seeing her after a long time.”
It is understood that Ms Kaur had been feeling "unwell" when she arrived at the airport and boarded the plane with no issues, with reports suggesting she died of tuberculosis.
Image credits: news.com.au