A young woman who died in her plane seat as her flight prepared to depart from Melbourne spent her final moments looking at a photo of her parents on her phone.
24-year-old aspiring chef Manpreet Kaur flew back to Delhi, India on June 20 to visit her parents for the first time in four years after moving to Australia.
She suffered a medical episode as she was putting on her seat belt. The plane taxied back to the gate, where cabin crew and paramedics tried in vain to revive her.
Her cousin and Melbourne housemate, Kuldeep Kaur, told Daily Mail Australia that Ms Kaur’s health had deteriorated in recent months as she unknowingly suffered from tuberculosis. She travelled back so her family could help her recover.
Post-mortem confirmation of the respiratory infection means her body cannot be transported out of the country and her family are arranging travel to Australia to say goodbye to her.
The passenger who sat next to Ms Kaur has now spoken, describing the minutes between her boarding the plane and her medical condition, in the hope that this will provide some comfort to the family.
“It’s very difficult to come to terms with the fact that a young girl you just had contact with has died in front of your eyes,” retired army officer Ravinder Singh told news.com.au on Thursday.
“Her innocent face still haunts me, and I want her parents to know that she loved them very much. She left this world peacefully looking at their photo.”
The family of 24-year-old aspiring chef Manpreet Kaur (pictured) are applying for a visa to Australia to attend her funeral after attempts to repatriate her body were unsuccessful.
Ms Kaur died suddenly on a plane en route to India at Tullamarine Airport to be reunited with her family, after unknowingly battling tuberculosis for months.
Mr Singh said that when he boarded, Ms Kaur was already seated in the aisle and he politely asked her to move so he could move to his window seat.
Shortly afterward, he said, the young woman began looking at photos on her phone but stopped at a photo of an older couple.
He asked if they were her parents, and she replied in the affirmative.
The plane then taxied towards the runway and Ms Kaur put down her phone, fastened her seatbelt and rested her head on the seat in front of her.
Mr Singh said he wanted to tell the young woman to be careful not to hit her head during take-off, but he felt that was not his job.
However, when the plane jolted as it approached the runway, he realized something was wrong. Kaur slumped and moved to the middle seat.
He caught the attention of the cabin crew, who checked her pulse and immediately turned the plane around.
Mr Singh said he was impressed with the cabin crew and that they behaved professionally in a difficult situation.
Retired army officer Ravinder Singh (pictured) sat next to Ms Kaur and said she died peacefully while looking at a photo of her parents on her phone
The young woman’s health had been deteriorating for months before her death, but she was expected to recover and return to Australia on July 25 (pictured: Ms Kaur)
Ms Kaur’s family are in the process of applying for a visa so they can fly to Australia and attend Ms Kaur’s funeral.
A friend of Ms Kaur, Gurdip Grewal, said the family was “devastated … (and) experiencing a mixture of shock, grief and disbelief”.
“It’s been a very tough time for everyone,” he told Daily Mail Australia.
Ms Kaur had been studying to become a chef since moving to Australia, but was still working at Australia Post in the month before her death.
Her cousin said he “couldn’t believe it” when a police officer knocked on the door to tell him his “honest and kind” cousin had died.
“I took her to the airport that morning and she said, ‘I’ll be back,’” Kuldeep said.
Ms Kaur had booked a return flight to Australia for July 25, expecting to recover from her illness by then.
a GoFundMe The campaign launched by Mr Grewal to support the Kaur family has raised more than $41,000 in just over a week.
“Our dear friend Manpreet left us far too soon, leaving a void in our lives that can never be filled,” the fundraising page reads.
“As we mourn her passing, we want to come together to honor her memory and support her family during this difficult time.”
A Qantas spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia: “Our thoughts are with her family and loved ones.”
Victoria Police will prepare a report for the coroner.
The airline was informed of Ms Kaur’s tuberculosis diagnosis on Monday and contacted the National Incident Centre Operations for more information.
The Victorian Department of Health said it had commenced limited source and contact tracing the following day and that anyone identified as a potential risk would be notified.