A British Airways crew member who was tragically found dead in his hotel room on a stop over could have been dead “for some time”, a source said. The young man was found lifeless after he did not report for work before a flight from San Francisco to London.
His colleagues raised the alarm and hotel managers inspected his room, where the young steward was found lifeless. This tragic case has become more shocking after a source claimed he could have been dead in his hotel room for as long as two days, during the layover, before he was found.
British Airways bosses have started to investigate what could have been behind their employee’s tragic death. He checked into the £150-a-night hotel on Tuesday but the pilots left for the airport on Thursday without him. Cabin crew and flight managers waited at the hotel, but the steward did not show and didn’t answer his phone.
A source told The Sun that the young flight attendant could have died days before he was found, saying: “The grim reality is that he may have been dead in his bed for some time.”
The source revealed the team was heartbroken by the tragedy, saying: “There was no way the flight back from San Francisco could go ahead. Staff were in absolute bits at the sudden loss of their friend.” They added: “The steward was a popular member of the team and this came as a bolt from the blue.”
The pilots came back to the hotel after the shocking discovery to support their crew and flight BA284 had to be cancelled, but flyers were not told why.
Up to 850 passengers had their travel plans disrupted by the last minute cancellation but they were either put on different flights or given hotel rooms. British Airways operates two direct flights to San Francisco International Airport (SFO) a day from Heathrow airport.
The Mirror has approached British Airways for comment.
A similar tragedy happened in 2024 when a British Airways pilot died between flights when he suddenly collapsed in a luxury hotel in the Caribbean. The 47-year-old horrifically collapsed in front of holidaymakers after arriving in St Lucia.
The “very popular” pilot’s death left his crew devastated and they were offered counselling after the tragedy. A source at the time said: “This tragedy has left British Airways staff stunned and deeply upset. The senior first officer was very popular and his death was completely out of the blue.
“He was the life and soul; a really popular guy and just 47-years-old old. He collapsed suddenly in a public area.”
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