An Australian couple has endured a harrowing flight after being forced to sit next to a deceased passenger for four hours on a Qatar Airways journey from Melbourne to Doha.
Mitchell Ring and Jennifer Colin were travelling to Venice via Qatar when a fellow passenger collapsed in the aisle near the aircraft's bathroom.
After the woman was pronounced dead, crew members placed her body in a seat next to Ring, whilst his wife Colin, already a nervous flyer, was left distressed by the ordeal.
The incident, which occurred last week, is now being investigated by both Qatar Airways and Qantas, through whom the couple had booked their tickets.
After the woman was pronounced dead, crew members placed her body in a seat next to Mitchell Ring
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Speaking to A Current Affair, Ring described the tragic moments as they unfolded: "Unfortunately, the lady couldn't be saved, which was pretty heartbreaking to watch."
The crew attempted to move the deceased passenger to business class using a chair.
"They brought this chair down... and they put her in the chair and tried to wheel her up towards business class. But she was quite a large lady, and they couldn't get her through the aisle," Ring explained.
The incident occurred during the first leg of what was meant to be a 20-hour journey to Venice for the Melbourne couple.
After failing to move the body to business class, crew members noticed empty seats near the couple and asked them to shift over.
"They said, 'Can you move over please?' and I just said, 'Yes, no problem'," Ring recalled.
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The couple were distressed and are worried about their flight back
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Colin was shocked by the situation: "When my husband turned around and said, 'move, move', I was pretty shocked and I said, 'are they going to put her there?'"
The cabin crew reportedly failed to offer alternative seating arrangements for the distressed couple.
Fortunately, another passenger with a spare seat in a different row offered to accommodate Colin, whilst her husband remained seated near the deceased passenger.
The couple were further distressed when they had to remain seated while paramedics boarded the aircraft in Doha.
"It wasn't nice. They have a duty of care towards their customers as well as their staff," Ring said.
Qatar Airways issued a statement saying: "First and foremost our thoughts are with the family of the passenger who sadly passed away on board our flight."
The airline added: "We apologise for any inconvenience or distress this incident may have caused, and are in the process of contacting passengers in line with our policies and procedures."
The couple had booked their journey through Qantas, which confirmed the incident would be investigated.
The traumatic experience has cast a shadow over what was meant to be the couple's dream holiday to Venice, where they are attempting to enjoy their stay despite concerns about their return flights.
Ring expressed his need for professional support following the incident: "I don't really know how I feel and would like to speak to somebody to make sure I'm alright."
Colin is trying to maintain a positive outlook despite the circumstances: "I'm trying to make the best of a pretty hard situation, but, you know, we're on holidays so we're really trying to have a good time," she said.
