Taiwanese Woman Who Gave Birth Aboard a China Airlines Flight to the U.S. Now Separated From Her Child and Facing Charges
A Taiwanese woman identified only by her surname Jian is now facing charges for concealing her pregnancy aboard a China Airlines flight to the United States and subsequently giving birth to her baby mid-flight.
CBS News reports Thursday that the woman did not inform the staff at Taipei's Taoyuan International Airport that she was already 36 weeks pregnant.
The concealment puts Jian in legal trouble in Taiwan which aviation regulations stipulates that women who are more than 32 weeks pregnant are required to present a doctor's certification verifying that they are fit to fly, The Straits Times notes Monday.
Jian boarded China Airlines Flight 8 which was traveling from Taipei, Taiwan to Los Angeles, California. Prior to take-off, Jian said she was just feeling a little bloated when flight-attendants noticed that she might be pregnant.
The Telegraph reports Wednesday when she went into labor mid-flight, flight attendants advised her to lie down and prepare for delivery. However, the woman insisted that she would give birth later and continued to ask if they were already in U.S. airspace.
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) physician Dr. Angelica Zen assisted with the delivery.
"They initially told me it was just a lady having some abdominal pain, so I thought it was going to be something simple," Zen told The Associated Press. "But when I saw her she was, like, very pregnant."
Following the successful childbirth, the flight was diverted to Alaska's Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, after which the mother and baby were sent to a local hospital.
Taiwanese media reported that the woman has been deported by U.S. immigration authorities, while the child remained under the care of state authorities in Alaska.
Taipei Times also said that China Airlines is seeking $30,000 compensation from Jian for the cost of the delay caused by her childbirth.
Passenger Amira Rajput told ABC News a boarder patrol agent who asked for Jian's passport said "this is something foreign women do, to try and deliver overseas for citizenship."
California-based immigration lawyer J Craig Fong said since the child is an American, the child can stay in the United States until repatriation is possible.