Flight death woman 'was healthy'

The incident happened on a flight from San Francisco

The father of a woman from north Wales who collapsed and died at the end of a flight from San Francisco to Heathrow has spoken of his shock at her death.

Susan Mavir-Ross, 42, from Llay, Wrexham, suffered a pulmonary thrombosis embolism at the end of the nine-hour flight.

Similar incidents on long-haul flights have been controversially linked with so-called 'economy-class syndrome'.

We have no idea why this should have happened

Hartley Mavir, victim's father

It has also been revealed that a 68-year-old Cardiff man has died of deep vein thrombosis after a longhaul flight to Australia.

Thomas Lamb was taken ill imediately after ariving in Australia - but was in a coma for three weks before his death.

His family are considering suing Singapore Airlines.

Speaking at his home in Workington, Cumbria, Hartley Mavir said his daughter was fit and healthy.

"She played golf and swam. She was actually returning from a golfing holiday when she died," he said.

"She did travel a lot. It was one of her hobbies. We have no idea why this should have happened."

Cabin staff on the Virgin plane attempted to treat Mrs Mavir-Ross on board and the aircraft was given a priority landing status.

But she was pronounced dead shortly after being taken to Ashford Hospital in Surrey.

Virgin Airlines said Mrs Mavir-Ross was travelling business class and was treated on board the airplane by a doctor.

'Natural causes'

A spokesman for Virgin Atlantic offered their condolences to Mrs Mavir-Ross's family, but said there was nothing to link her death with the flight.

The coroner's office in Surrey said there would be no inquest as embolism was considered as a natural cause of death.

The same office dealt with the death of Emma Christoffersen, the 28-year-old from south Wales who died last October following a flight from Australia to London.

A post-mortem showed she had suffered from a deep vein thrombosis.

Mrs Mavir-Ross had worked for the past 12 years as a senior buyer at Iceland Frozen Foods on Deeside.

Medical research has not proved conclusively that long haul flights are linked to passengers developing fatal blood clots.

Consultant haematologist Dr Patrick Kesteven said DVT cases were rare and that complicated research into the possible links between thrombosis and long-haul flights.