Man Chokes to Death on Airplane

A woman flying from Singapore to New Zealand sat beside her dead boyfriend’s body for nine hours after he choked to death on his in-flight meal. "One minute we were sitting next to each other kissing, holding hands, and the next minute he was choking," says Vanessa Preechakul. A doctor and two nurses attempted to assist him but could not revive him. Flight attendants then moved the body to the crew rest area, and Preechakul asked to sit with it for the remainder of the flight. The man, Robert Rippingale, was flying home to celebrate his parents’ 50th birthdays.