Dr. Jaiveer’s son, Surya Jaiveer, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the airline seeking ₹1.15 crore in compensation, alleging negligence in both food service and medical assistance.
Incident Details
The incident occurred on June 30, 2023, during a 15.5-hour flight from Los Angeles to Colombo. Dr. Jaiveer had specifically requested a vegetarian meal, but a flight attendant reportedly informed him it was unavailable and served him non-vegetarian food instead.
Shortly after attempting to eat, Dr. Jaiveer began choking and lost consciousness. Flight crew members tried to assist him and contacted MedAire doctors for guidance, but his condition deteriorated.
The flight made an emergency landing in Edinburgh, Scotland, where Dr. Jaiveer was hospitalized. He passed away on August 3, over a month later, due to aspiration pneumonia, a lung infection caused by accidentally inhaling food or liquid.
Legal Action
Surya Jaiveer’s lawsuit claims Qatar Airways failed to provide the pre-ordered vegetarian meal and did not offer adequate medical assistance when his father’s condition worsened.
The case cites negligence in food service and in-flight medical care and invokes the Montreal Convention, an international treaty that allows compensation of up to $1.75 million for deaths or injuries during international flights.
Past Food Safety Issues in Airlines
This is not Qatar Airways’ first in-flight food-related incident. Last year, British reality star Jack Fowler, allergic to nuts, nearly died after being served chicken curry containing nuts on a flight to Dubai.
Similar cases have occurred on other airlines; for example, a Singapore Airlines flight from Frankfurt to New York had to divert to Paris after a passenger with a shellfish allergy fell seriously ill
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