Airline Issues Apology After Flight Attendant Drops, Injures Baby

Russian low-cost carrier Pobeda Airlines has apologized after a five-month-old girl suffered serious head injuries after falling out of her portable cradle while being carried off of a plane in Surgut, Russia.

According to the U.K.’s Mirror, a male flight attendant was carrying the child down the steps of the Boeing 737 following a recent flight from Makhachkala, Russia so that the mother could handle her luggage. However, the crew member failed to notice that the baby wasn’t properly strapped in before she fell out onto the steps.

The girl was rushed to the hospital and treated for a concussion and broken nose.

“We are very sorry. The accident truly did happen,” the Aeroflot subsidiary said in a statement to Yahoo. “A very careful investigation is being conducted now, and we will inform about the details later. The air carrier will fully compensate all the expenses associated with the treatment of the child.”

Citing an anonymous source from the airline, the Mirror reported that the crew member who was involved “sincerely wanted to help the customer” and later attempted to visit the child in the hospital but was turned away because of privacy reasons.

Pobeda Airlines made headlines two years ago when it announced plans to airlines/russian-airline-teaching-employees-self-defense-to-combat-aggressive-passengers.html” target=”_self” rel=”nofollow”>teach its employees self-defense following a series of attacks on team members by passengers and dissatisfied customers.