'Acted quickly, appropriately': Qatar Airways defends crew for placing couple next to dead body on 14-hr flight

Qatar Airways

Qatar Airways in a statement has defended their crew's decision to leave an Australian couple sitting next to a dead passenger on a 14-hour flight, saying that its crew "acted quickly, appropriately and professionally".

In a statement to the BBC, the airline said that an internal review found that the crew's handling of the woman's death was "in line with the training and industry standard practice."

Mitchell Ring and Jennifer Colin were travelling from Melbourne to Doha, en route to Italy's Venice, when a woman walked out the toilet and collapsed near their row about 10 hours into the journey.

The statement also said that they have offered support and compensation to the family of the deceased and other passengers who were "directly affected" by the incident.

The couple say cabin crew placed her corpse, covered in blankets, next to Ring for the remaining four hours of the flight without offering to move him, despite there being empty seats, while Colin was able to move to an empty seat nearby.

“I was really shocked,” Colin said, calling the experience “traumatic.”

Qatar Airways said it apologised for "any inconvenience or distress this incident may have caused", adding that it was in the process of contacting passengers, according to BBC.

The couple, meanwhile, said they had not been contacted or offered support by Qatar Airways or Qantas Airways, through which the pair booked their flights. They said there should be a protocol to ensure passengers onboard were looked after in such situations.