A baby boy born prematurely aboard a Jeju Air flight from the Philippines to Incheon, South Korea, has died, according to airport police.
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Emergency responders received a report early Sunday morning that an infant delivered mid-flight was not breathing, The Korea Herald newspaper reported. By the time medical personnel arrived, the newborn had no pulse and was pronounced dead after being transported to a nearby hospital.
The mother, a Filipino woman in her thirties, was travelling from Clark with her husband, mother-in-law and daughter on the flight, which landed at the country’s main airport at around 6.20am.
She was in her 23rd to 25th week of pregnancy, Yonhap News reported. Under airline regulations, women before their 32nd week of pregnancy face no flight restrictions.
The airport police are investigating the incident as, under international law, a nation retains legal authority – known as flag state jurisdiction – over its flagged vessels, including aircraft.
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“As the baby was born and died on a Korean-flagged aircraft, Korean authorities will handle the investigation,” a police official said, according to the Korea JoongAng Daily. “We will thoroughly examine the circumstances of the birth and what led to the child’s death.”