Canadian First Airborn

Hi,

This babe's flights of fancy was she really wanted to be Canadian so badly that she came early .... a HighBorn Canadian!

Karmen

Baby born on plane given Canadian citizenship
Updated Mon. Sep. 25 2006 6:43 PM ET

CTV.ca News Staff

Rabab Ahmed may have a new definition for the term "airborne." She gave birth to a baby girl on a British Airways flight that made an emergency stop at the Halifax International Airport.

Ahmed went into labour while traveling from Boston to her home in Egypt Sunday night. British Airways staff quickly diverted the flight to Halifax, in the hopes that the baby would stay put until Ahmed could be transported to hospital.

In an interview with CTV Atlantic News, Ahmed recounted the dramatic events.

"They told me not to push so we could wait to get to the hospital."

But before the plane could land, Ahmed's water broke and several passengers began coaching her through labour. Two young doctors, and a midwife who had not delivered a baby in 25 years, helped Ahmed deliver the newborn.

The new mom says her labour pains might have looked more like air rage.

"I was screaming my lungs out because I was in so much pain," she said, "They had to hold my arms and I was punching and abusing everyone."

The newborn, who is named Nadine, is in good health, but the new mom says she was terrified that would not be the case.

"What I was thinking about was both of us are not making it out of this plane."

After the airline diverted the flight, the pilot radioed ahead and instructed emergency crews to meet the plane with an incubator waiting for baby Nadine.

The doctor who attended to the baby girl credits her onboard delivery team with doing everything just right. Because Nadine was 6 weeks premature, Dr. Michael Graven says it was especially important to get her into an incubator quickly.

The newborn weighs in at only four pounds, 14 ounces, but her doctor says she is perfectly healthy and ready to head home to Egypt at any time.

Because she was born in Canadian airspace, baby Nadine will have Canadian citizenship.

PS: I wonder if she'll get a Nova Scotia birth certificate?

Ma Yappy