Australian couple forced to sit next to dead passenger for hours on Qatar Airways flight

An Australian couple has shared their distressing experience of sitting next to a deceased woman for hours on a long-haul flight. 

Mitchell Ring and Jennifer Colin were on a Qatar Airways flight from Melbourne to Venice when the woman suddenly collapsed in the aisle after using the restroom.

Despite the efforts of the cabin crew, she could not be revived.

'Unfortunately, the lady couldn't be saved, which was pretty heartbreaking to watch,' Mr Ring told *A Current Affair*.

The crew attempted to move the woman and placed her in a chair, but struggled to move her through the narrow aisle as she was a larger woman.

Noticing empty seats near the couple, the crew asked them to relocate to make space for the body.

The deceased woman was placed beside Mr Ring and covered with blankets for the remainder of the four-hour flight to Doha.

'When my husband turned around and said, "move, move", I was pretty shocked and I said, "are they going to put her there?"' she recalled.

Fortunately, a woman seated in another row offered Ms Colin a spare seat, as she claimed the cabin crew failed to offer an alternative seating arrangement away from the body.

The couple's ordeal was further prolonged after landing in Doha, as they were forced to wait while police and medical officers boarded.

Mr Ring explained that the crew started removing the blankets and inspecting the body while he and his wife remained seated, which led him to see the woman's face.

'I can't believe they told us to stay... it wasn't nice,' he said.

'They have a duty of care towards their customers as well as their staff, we should be contacted to make sure, do you need some support, do you need some counselling?

'I don't really know how I feel and would like to speak to somebody to make sure I'm alright.'

Despite the traumatic experience, the couple is trying to make the most of their Venice holiday.

'I'm trying to make the best of a pretty hard situation, but, you know, we're on holidays so we're really trying to have a good time,' Ms Colin said.

Qatar Airways has since stated it is investigating the incident.

The couple booked their flight through Qantas, which confirmed it would also address the matter.

'Ms Colin booked tickets through Qantas and travelled with Qatar Airways, a fellow Oneworld Alliance carrier,' a Qantas spokesperson said.

'The process for handling incidents onboard an aircraft like this is managed by the operating airline, which in this case is Qatar Airways.'