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‘Strict vegetarian’ cardiologist dies choking on Qatar Airways flight after being served non-veg meal
The family of a ‘strict vegetarian’ cardiologist who died on board a Qatar Airways flight says that he choked on food while trying to eat around the meat.
The grieving family of a ‘strict vegetarian’ who died on board a Qatar Airways flight says that he choked on a piece of food while trying to eat around the meat. Asoka Jayaweera, an 85-year-old cardiologist from California, was served a non-vegetarian meal on a Qatar flight from the US to Sri Lanka.
Vegetarian passenger served meal with meat
Jayaweera had booked his flight to Colombo on June 23, 2023. A week later, he boarded the flight at Los Angeles International Airport.
Jayaweera, a strict vegetarian, had ordered a vegetarian meal during his 15-and-a-half hour long flight. However, a Qatar flight attendant told him that there were no vegetarian meals left and he was instead given a regular meal with meat.
The 85-year-old was instructed to “eat around” the meat, according to a report in The Independent.
“While attempting to ‘eat around’ the meat in the meal that he was provided, Asoka Jayaweera began choking shortly thereafter,” states his son’s complaint, which was filed July 31 in California state court.
The complaint does not specify which item of food he choked on.
HT.com has reached out to Qatar Airways for a statement. This copy will be updated on receiving a response.
Qatar crew tried to help choking passenger
Qatar Airways crew members stepped in to help Jayaweera when he began choking. However, the pilot was unable to make an emergency landing.
According to the complaint, cabin crew contacted MedAire, a service where aviation-trained ER doctors remotely guide airline staff through in-flight medical emergencies.
“At approximately 02:46 UTC, Asoka Jayaweera was monitored with an oxygen saturation level of 69 percent,” the complaint says. He was later administered oxygen and drugs too, but crew failed to revive him.
No emergency landing
The pilot couldn’t land quickly to get the 85-year-old to a doctor because the plane was “traveling over the Arctic Circle/Ocean,” a newly filed wrongful death lawsuit obtained by The Independent alleges.
However, Jayaweera’s son Surya says the aircraft was actually over the Midwest at the time and could have easily diverted, according to their complaint.
When the flight eventually landed in Edinburgh, Scotland, Jayaweera, a “strict vegetarian,” had been unconscious for about three-and-a-half hours, the complaint says. He was taken to the hospital, but by then it was already too late.
Asoka Jayaweera would die in Edinburgh on August 3, 2023, due to aspiration pneumonia, an infection caused by inhaling food or liquid into the lungs.
His son Surya Jayaweera has sued the airline, seeking damages for negligence and wrongful death. He is asking for compensation that could be higher than the limits set by the Montreal Convention (an international treaty that caps airline liability for passenger deaths). He is also asking for interest on the money from before the court decides, plus the costs of the court case and lawyers’ fees.
