Biman Bangladesh pilot who suffered cardiac arrest mid-air dies in Nagpur

The pilot of the Biman Bangladesh Airlines, Captain Nawshad Ataul Quaiyum, whose mid-air heart attack on Friday, August 27, compelled emergency landing of a Dhaka-bound flight from Muscat in India’s Nagpur, breathed his last on Monday, August 30, while on life support. Captain Nawshad is survived by his wife, two daughters and a son.

'Pilot no more', confirms Airline's Spokesperson

The pilot suffered a heart attack in mid-air and was taken to Kingsway Hospital in Nagpur, where he died on Monday, Biman Bangladesh spokesperson Tahera Khandaker, reported bdnews24.com. “We have got information from the hospital that he is no longer with us,” she said. President of Bangladesh Airlines Pilot Association, Mahbubur Rahman confirming the death said that Captain Nawshad was over 45 years of age. Meanwhile, efforts are afoot to return his body to Bangladesh.

Flight en route to Dhaka from Muscat made emergency landing on August 27

The Biman Bangladesh plane had made an emergency landing at the Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport in Nagpur on Friday, August 27, after the pilot suffered a heart attack mid-air. Captain Nawshad flying the Biman Air BG-022 was en route to Dhaka from Muscat and was ferrying 126 passengers. The Biman air cockpit had contacted the Nagpur Air Traffic Controller (ATC) and had informed them that a pilot had suffered a severe heart attack and that he required immediate medical assistance. An ambulance waiting at the airport took him to the Kingsway Hospital, located around 10 km from the Nagpur airport where he underwent an angiogram test. The passengers were later carried back to Dhaka on Friday night. The pilot died at 11.30 am on Monday, August 30.

Brain haemorrhage lead to coma 

According to the hospital, Captain Nawshad had initially suffered a cardiac arrest while operating the flight and later a CT scan revealed that he had sustained a brain haemorrhage. The pilot had gone into a coma after suffering cardiac arrest. His condition went serious and remained on ventilation support after the brain haemorrhage led him to bleed profusely, said the officials. Born in 1977, Nawshad had joined Biman Bangladesh Airlines in 2002. He started as the First Officer of A310 and Boeing 777 and later became the Pilot of a Boeing 737.

With PTI Inputs

Image: AP