Ratpoison,
My apologies. Your phrasing came across as critical when you said "another 10 hours", like it was too long for the guy to be left there... I posted tired and misread it. (Still no reason to make insults about my intelligence; asking me to re-read would have sufficed btw.)
If you'd clarified then that the "amateurish halfwits" you're referring to are Management then I would agree. But that's for another thread.
Placing someone in a lav is strictly prohibited in the manual. We were told in ground school that this was learnt the hard way when bodies then became completely lodged & immovable without great effort (and damage) due to rigor mortis- even taking off the doors wasn't enough in some cases. Also, putting someone in a lav is hardly respectful. As hard as it may be on the other pax, a seat/row of seats is the best option.
While QF don't carry a mortality kit, they do have a bodily fluids kit which could be utilised to minimise any spillage. However, I agree that they should have them, at least on the long haul fleet.
The issue of not having anywhere dedicated is a space/utilisation one; as far as I know SQ is the only airline in the world to have opted for a specific place to carry a deceased body (I have seen it). Not even EK have this, and they have the highest rate of onboard deaths of any airline worldwide. (Mainly due to the routes & pax numbers that they fly, before any of you freak out about flying with them)
I have heard it said that in many cases where a doctor has pronounced death, it is often the best option to carry on to the intended destination, as the bereaved family would usually have arrangements in place for accommodation and/or relatives there, whereas diverting could traumatise them even further, being in an unintended and unfamiliar place. Ditto on the other pax who are probably also traumatised if they witnessed, as wel las other considerations (yes commercial in some cases, others may be things like access to company staff to offer support, EAP programs in airline bases as opposed to outstations, availability of replacement crew instead of expecting the already upset crew to wait for the pax to be handed over, if the diversion airport is not a company port and/or understaffed. Of course the ideal would be to divert but I don't think it would always necessarily be the best option...