The 60-year-old woman who tragically died on a Qatar Airways flight from Doha to Sydney over the weekend has been identified as Sharon Gordon.
Sharon, a customer service station attendant at Wynyard Station, had been visiting her daughter in London and was flying alone.
Approximately seven hours before arriving in Sydney, Sharon began gasping for breath and became unresponsive during the 14-hour flight.
One passenger, who was sitting in the row in front of Sharon with her husband and baby, said she heard her making unusual noises.
A stewardess initially checked on Sharon before two more joined with oxygen.
“You could see she wasn’t breathing,” the passenger told 7News under the condition of anonymity
About 20 minutes later, four different stewards arrived, lifted Gordon out of her seat, started CPR and used defibrillator.
“I turned around and looked at the lady and she was very pale and her lips were white,” the passenger continued, describing the woman as “limp”.
“At that point, my husband and I thought that she was dead. Why didn’t they do that a half hour earlier?”
An announcement was made asking if there was a doctor or nurse on board, which occurred approximately an hour after Sharon’s initial distress.
Sharon’s family has requested assistance from the federal government, feeling dissatisfied with the airline’s response to her medical emergency.
Sharon’s partner Rob Bray said her friends and family are devastated by her loss.
“I love her and will miss her so much,” he said.
“Mother to Cameron and Ashley. She will be so sorely missed by us all. Her workmates at Wynyard Station are devastated.”
The anonymous passenger said she believes that Qatar Airways could have handled the situation better, claiming “they just left her there”.
A Qatar Airways spokesperson said: “Regrettably, the lady could not be revived. Our thoughts are with the family at this difficult time.”