The body of a Kenyan man was discovered dead on a plane that had landed at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Nairobi on Thursday, March 12.

A report by K24 Digital indicated that the 37-year-old man allegedly suffered a heart attack while en route from Doha, Qatar in a flight carrying 144 passengers. 

Kenya Airports Police Unit Commandant Titus Karuri stated that the man was pronounced dead upon arrival in Nairobi.

“The passenger was travelling to Nairobi from Doha when he fell short of breath, started gasping for air and died,” Karuri stated.

The plane touched down at 8:10 a.m. in the morning after a six-hour flight of 3,351 kilometres from the Qatari capital to Nairobi.

The deceased’s body was ferried to City Mortuary.

“His father was informed about the sad news, and directed to collect the deceased’s luggage,” the publication quoted a highly placed source at JKIA.

Passengers who were next to him on the plane were questioned by the police regarding the sudden demise of a fellow traveller.

Police are conducting investigations to establish the cause of death, with airport authorities expected to release an official statement upon the conclusion of the probe.

With reports indicating that he succumbed from a heart attack, kenyagist.com combined a number of health precautions for individuals with heart diseases to consider before flights.

First, one should ensure to travel with medicine, that if s/he is travelling alone or with a nurse or any other assistant.

One should be cautious of fluid consumption for example alcohol, and salt intake if you have cardiomyopathy or a history of heart failure prior and in flight.

Sitting for a while on long plane flights can slightly increase a normal person’s risk of blood clots in the legs, but can also be attributed to medical issues one has. 

One with a peripheral artery disease (PAD) also called a vascular disease or a history of heart failure, the clot risk is higher. Health.org adviced that getting up and walking around when possible is recommended for long flights, on the surety that the seatbelt light is not on when you do so.

One should inform a doctor prior to travelling in order to get the best advice on what precautions to take. For example, some people might need compression stockings or additional oxygen, just to travel.

While on a flight, among the things one needs when they are experiencing a heart attack are an aspirin, oxygen and nitroglycerin. It is vital that the aspirin is chewable so that it is fast absorbed into the person’s system.

As much as there is the aircraft’s crew, the safety of an individual on a flight can be majorly determined by the person next to them.