Plane returns to drop sick passenger

An Iberia flight from Shanghai to Madrid returned to Pudong yesterday after a foreign passenger suddenly felt acute pain.

Flight IB6888 had taken off from the Pudong International Airport at 10:55am but returned to the airport at 2:12pm, Shanghai Airport Authority said.

The male passenger, a Spanish citizen of around 40 years of age, suffered from acute kidney stone pain around noon when the aircraft was flying over Tianjin in north China.

Emergency procedures were put in place as the flight headed back to Shanghai.

Doctors at Pudong later said the passenger was in a stable condition. Accompanied by another Spanish passenger who was also on the flight, he was taken to Shanghai East International Medical Center in Pudong for further treatment. 

The patient received antalgic and antibiotic treatment at the center and remained in hospital under observation, according to the center.

One of his Chinese friends was at the center.

After refueling, the aircraft took off again at 3:58pm with the remaining passengers.

The flight to Madrid takes around 14 hours and covers a distance of more than 10,000 kilometers.

Iberia launched direct flights between Shanghai and Madrid in June 2016 to meet the growing demand from business and leisure travelers.