Passenger Gives Birth 35K Miles Over Pacific — Luckily, Doctor Was On Board Tokyo-Bound Flight

Giving birth on Mother’s Day? A nice surprise. Going into labor 35,000 feet above the surface of the Earth? Probably terrifying. That’s what happened to one passenger on a flight to Tokyo on Sunday, as the plane soared over the Pacific Ocean.

Luckily, a doctor was on board to come to the passenger’s rescue – a 23-year-old Canadian who managed to deliver a girl before touching down in Japan 30 minutes ahead of schedule, Business Insider reported.

The stunned father was captured on news cameras holding his newborn, who they named Chloe, the Mirror added.

“I couldn’t imagine. This happened completely unexpectedly. It turned out to be a beautiful baby girl.”

It’s not clear how far along she was in her pregnancy, but many airlines – including Air Canada – let pregnant women who have no medical history of premature childbirth to board a plane up to and including their 36th week.

But it doesn’t appear the surprise derailed anyone’s plans. The passenger went into labor over the Pacific, so an emergency landing was certainly out of the question. But the flight was 30 minutes early and jumped ahead others in line at an airport outside Tokyo.

So, if anything, the birth helped passengers reach their destination faster.

Evidently, the mother and child suffered no difficulty during their unusual ordeal. The new mom disembarked in a wheelchair on Sunday and was taken to the hospital for an overnight stay. Both are reportedly fine.

For the remaining passengers, a sudden, mile-high childbirth was an exciting and adorable addition to what otherwise would’ve been a long and boring journey.

“Everyone was clapping their hands. She’s such a cute baby with big eyes,” one woman said.

“This is a happy thing,” said a man.

Though an airplane birth – thousands and thousands of feet above the Pacific – is unusual, it’s not a first, the Insider added.

A Qatar Airways airplane made an emergency landing in Canada in March when, hours after take-off, a woman delivered a boy. And in January, a Jordanian gave birth over a different ocean – the Atlantic this time – on the way to New York.

[Photo Courtesy Christopher Furlong/Getty Images]