Chennai: Forget being on time. An Air India plane took off early from
Bangalore and made it to Chennai almost 15 minutes ahead of schedule, to
bring a cadaver heart to its waiting recipient, on Wednesday.
This is particularly praiseworthy, given that the pilot of AI 264 was flying almost non-stop from Male to Thiruvananthapuram, then to Bangalore and finally to Chennai.
“Normally, the plane leaves at 3.30 pm and arrives in Chennai at 4.30 pm. But given the hurry today, the pilot had passengers board early and there was push-back at 3.22 pm itself,” said an Air India spokesperson.
As the heart was harvested in Bangalore at 1.30 pm, it needed to reach the donor within four hours, making every minute saved, vital.
This is the first time a cadaver heart has crossed state lines, particularly by air. A few years ago, a liver was brought by road and transplanted, but it has not been attempted for hearts before.
Recently, a liver was airlifted from Chennai to Coimbatore and another organ vice-versa, making a strong case for organ transport by commercial flights.
It may be recalled that when the liver was being taken to Kilpauk Medical College Hospital, the organ and the doctors were made to wait for 45 minutes after checking in, as Jet Airways stuck to its schedule.
Not so with the Maharaja. “The journey was particularly fast and a team from Air India was waiting to receive the doctors with the heart and help them hurry through the arrival formalities,” said the spokesperson.
The plane entered Chennai airspace a little after 4 pm and landed eleven minutes later. The pilot taxied into the bay by 4.16 pm and the heart had the distinction of being the first living thing off the aircraft.
Read news in full 04/09/14 New Indian Express
This is particularly praiseworthy, given that the pilot of AI 264 was flying almost non-stop from Male to Thiruvananthapuram, then to Bangalore and finally to Chennai.
“Normally, the plane leaves at 3.30 pm and arrives in Chennai at 4.30 pm. But given the hurry today, the pilot had passengers board early and there was push-back at 3.22 pm itself,” said an Air India spokesperson.
As the heart was harvested in Bangalore at 1.30 pm, it needed to reach the donor within four hours, making every minute saved, vital.
This is the first time a cadaver heart has crossed state lines, particularly by air. A few years ago, a liver was brought by road and transplanted, but it has not been attempted for hearts before.
Recently, a liver was airlifted from Chennai to Coimbatore and another organ vice-versa, making a strong case for organ transport by commercial flights.
It may be recalled that when the liver was being taken to Kilpauk Medical College Hospital, the organ and the doctors were made to wait for 45 minutes after checking in, as Jet Airways stuck to its schedule.
Not so with the Maharaja. “The journey was particularly fast and a team from Air India was waiting to receive the doctors with the heart and help them hurry through the arrival formalities,” said the spokesperson.
The plane entered Chennai airspace a little after 4 pm and landed eleven minutes later. The pilot taxied into the bay by 4.16 pm and the heart had the distinction of being the first living thing off the aircraft.
Read news in full 04/09/14 New Indian Express
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