Going in to labour

[gcolyer]

If one of your Pax went in to labour during a flight would you call a Mayday or PanPan??? and why the choice you choose?

I think I would call PanPan as I don't beleive it it is threatening the aircraft or the saftey of anyone onboard.

But then again it could be a complicated labour for the mother or the baby, so maybe a Mayday is better.

Or

I am not sure I could take to much screaming, blood and gore in my spamcan for longer than absolutley needed, so a Mayday would definatley be better.

[aluminium persuader]

Okay, I'll take the bait.

"Mayday" is distress.

"Pan" is urgency.

Therefore, if this situation arose, "pan" would be the call to make. However (and it's a big however!) this situation I am sure would be most unlikely to arise since there's no-one daft enough to take a heavily pregnant woman flying (unnecessarily!) in a light aircraft.

[ericferret]

MAYDAY if in a front seat, PAN if a back seat!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ericferret]

Fly the aircraft first and allow for the sudden c of g shift!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[BackPacker]

I have just had my first passenger (RHS) puke on a flight. He started on downwind (after a 1.5 hour flight - couldn't he have done it earlier) and carried on puking all the way into the landing. Very distracting for me as a pilot. Woman in labour - don't even want to contemplate how distracting that would be.

So for me - Mayday and get an ambulance ready please. Maydays are also applicable for serious medical problems, and a woman deep in labour, in a small craft with no qualified help nearby counts as a serious medical in my book. (I'm assuming you're not referring to "I'm feeling a bit of a movement here. I might just have this baby today or maybe early tomorrow." but "My water just broke and I have contractions every three minutes. I can't breathe it off anymore, I'm going to push and I'm having my baby RIGHT NOW.")

Besides, I hope that as far as ATC is concerned, I get the same service as soon as I explained the situation, regardless of whether I declared a mayday or a pan. Unless another craft declares a mayday or pan at the same time. But that is getting to be a very remote possibility now...

But how do you fit one very pregnant lady in a small aircraft? Maybe the RHS of a 172 or 182 would work but all low-wings I know require you to walk over the wing then plonk deep down into a seat somewhere. Even when not in labour, they'll never get out again.

[Cusco]

Airline have their own rules about flying a pregnant pax. The rules vary from airline to airline and to a certain extent with the type(=length) of journey contemplated.
In some the limit is 32 weeks (full term is 40 weeks but you all new that didn't you). In others the limit is 36 weeks, but exceptions can be made with a supporting doctor's letter. The other thing to consider is that commercial flight insurance does not cover pregnancy without a supplement.
Now these rules are for a very good reason in that a pax delivering a baby in flight is at much greater risk and so is her baby.
So.......... these rules are there for a very good reason and only a complete idiot could consider flying a pregnant woman in a light aircraft such as a 172 (unless the journey had to be undertaken for a very good reason as there are plenty of other even more life threatening complications that can occur at altitude with low oxygen tension and turbulence.
So if you are daft enough to fly a pgt pax, the emergency call would depend on the situation.......
Just my two pennorth.
Cusco
(the clue is in the name.)

[gcolyer]

Thought this sort of response would be posted.

I would certainly have serious thoughts if I was to carry a preggy pax. And I don't think I would carry one who was over 32 weeks, even 32 weeks is a risk as early births are not exactly uncommon.

[DX Wombat]

Where on earth are you thinking of flying to with a pregnant passenger? You won't be very far away from an airfield in the UK.
It is MOST unlikely that the baby will arrive with the haste demonstrated for dramatic effect on tv (they do occasionally but VERY occasionally)* If you are worried contact the nearest airfield, explain the position, request a landing and ask for an ambulance to meet you.
*In case you are wondering, I'm a qualified midwife who worked in the Community for many years and sudden arrivals were very few and far between, especially with first babies. Second ones may be in a bit more of a hurry but not necessarily so.

[Cusco]

The safest time to fly anywhere when pregnant is the mid trimester . But even then other complications can be a problem.

In the forces flyers are grounded as soon as they're pregnant: IMHO the safest option.

Safe and contraction-free flying

Cusco

[aluminium persuader]

and remember - 99% of people are caused by accidents.

[BEagle]

Why would you risk flying with someone about to crap a brat?

Unless, that is, you want to get things moving along. In which case a good vindaloo followed by a few 5g max rate turns might do the trick - just be careful it doesn't get stuck behind the rudder pedals!



























No, of course I'm not being serious!

[DX Wombat]

BEagle - I know of one or two people who were taken for a ride down rough tracks full of potholes when overdue in an attempt (usually a vain one) to persuade the baby to depart from its current residence.

[BEagle]

Yep - hot chilli con carne followed by 50 mph in an old Landrover down a rutted farm track!

[DX Wombat]

I bet your popularity hit an all time low at that point BEagle.

[niknak]

What do you mean "at that point"........

[BEagle]

Not me driving! It was the suggestion of a farmer friend when my god-daughter was keeping her mother waiting....

How the very devil are you, niknak? Still counting fish??

[Whirlybird]

Just to complicate matters....

A friend's young teenage daughter didn't know she was pregnant, and it didn't show at all. Then one evening she went to the loo, and produced....a baby!!!! All happened rather quickly too, I gathered, though my friend was somewhat hysterical just afterwards and didn't explain it very well. But apparently the doctor at the hospital where they subsequently went said it wasn't all that an unusual situation, particularly with very young girls.

I just dread to think of that happening in a light aircraft!!!!!!

[gcolyer]

For the record I have no intentions of taking a pregant woman flying!!! I am not totally mental.

[DX Wombat]

Whirly in over eleven I have had two patients who produced their first babies very quickly. One knew she was pregnant and had been attending regular antenatal appointments the other was as 16 years old who said she didn't know she was pregnant but in a quiet conversation with her a couple of days later admitted she had known but was too ashamed / frightened to tell her parents (who turned out to be very supportive) so had carefully put it to the back of her mind until it could no longer be ignored. I used to wonder how people could not know they were pregnant until the night I had a fire (caused by a lightning strike). It was 02:00 and I stood at the bottom of the stairs looking at the smoke pouring under the living room door and thinking "No, it isn't happening" a thought that lasted a millisecond before the more rational "Get back upstairs and phone the Fire Brigade" took over. I realised then that it was simply because it was an immediately life-threatening situation that I reacted by calling the Fire Brigade but that I could now see why young, pregnant teenagers, and also older mums, could manage to persuade themselves that they were not pregnant as they would not perceive pregnancy as being immediately life-threatening and would be able to ignore all the signs and symptoms until the baby made an appearance.

[Wessex Boy]

My Dad took my Mum flying in an Auster 2 weeks before I was born, apparently the train journey back to London from Ipswich was much worse than the flight!
Can I log that time?