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| Southwest Airlines flight turns back after human heart discovery | |
| (about 9 hours later) | |
| A US passenger plane travelling from Seattle to Dallas was forced to turn back hours into its flight because a human heart had been left on board. | A US passenger plane travelling from Seattle to Dallas was forced to turn back hours into its flight because a human heart had been left on board. |
| Southwest Airlines says the organ was flown to Seattle from California, where it was to be processed at a hospital to have a valve recovered for future use. | Southwest Airlines says the organ was flown to Seattle from California, where it was to be processed at a hospital to have a valve recovered for future use. |
| But it was never unloaded and its absence was not noticed until the plane was almost half-way to Dallas. | But it was never unloaded and its absence was not noticed until the plane was almost half-way to Dallas. |
| The heart itself had not been intended for a specific patient. | The heart itself had not been intended for a specific patient. |
| Details of the incident, which occurred on Sunday, were revealed in media reports on Thursday. | Details of the incident, which occurred on Sunday, were revealed in media reports on Thursday. |
| Passengers were said to have been shocked when the captain told them about the cargo and why the flight was turning back. | Passengers were said to have been shocked when the captain told them about the cargo and why the flight was turning back. |
| Some used their smartphones to investigate the length of time that a heart can be stored before it is no longer viable for a transplant operation - typically between four and six hours, according to experts. | Some used their smartphones to investigate the length of time that a heart can be stored before it is no longer viable for a transplant operation - typically between four and six hours, according to experts. |
| The plane was reportedly in the air for about three hours. | The plane was reportedly in the air for about three hours. |
| A doctor who was among the passengers but not involved in the shipment of the organ, told the Seattle Times newspaper that the incident was a "horrific story of gross negligence". | A doctor who was among the passengers but not involved in the shipment of the organ, told the Seattle Times newspaper that the incident was a "horrific story of gross negligence". |
| Following the flight's return to Seattle, the heart was taken to a donor health centre for tissue storage and was said to have been received within the required time frame, the newspaper added. | Following the flight's return to Seattle, the heart was taken to a donor health centre for tissue storage and was said to have been received within the required time frame, the newspaper added. |