The birth of a baby on a flight has sparked a debate over its right to citizenship.
During a flight from Kingston, Jamaica, to New York City, a woman went into labour close to the East Coast of the US.
A pilot on the Caribbean Airlines flight told John F. Kennedy Airport that a passenger on board was going into labour. An air traffic controller responded by asking Caribbean Airlines' Flight 005 if medical teams would be needed on arrival, while another joked the child should be named after the airport.
“Tell her she’s got to name it Kennedy,” they said, also asking the pilot, “Is it out yet?”
The Caribbean Airlines aircraft did not declare an emergency on its approach to JFK, Metro reported.
In a statement, the airline said: “The airline commends the professionalism and measured response of its crew, who managed the situation in accordance with established procedures, ensuring the safety and comfort of all onboard.”
The child and mother received medical attention when the plane touched down
The citizenship of the baby may be up for debate, according to immigration lawyer Brad Bernstein.
“Is that baby a US citizen?” he asked in a video on his YouTube page.
"Here's the answer - depends on one thing: where exactly that plane was in the sky at the moment of birth.
"If the baby was born in US airspace, then under the 14th Amendment and State Department regulations, that child is automatically a US citizen.
"But if the baby was born even a few minutes earlier outside of the United States airspace, not a US citizen."
It is not clear where the flight was when the child was born.
On April 1, the US Supreme Court questioned President Donald Trump’s order declaring that children born to parents in the US illegally or temporarily are not US citizens.
There is a long-standing view that the US Constitution’s 14th Amendment, which was ratified in 1868 and has been federal law since 1940, confers citizenship on every person born in the US. There are exceptions to children born to foreign diplomats or a foreign occupying force.
The amendment was intended to grant Black people, including former slaves, citizenship.
The court is hearing the president’s appeal against a lower-court ruling in New Hampshire that struck down the restrictions, which have not taken effect anywhere in the US.
A ruling is expected by early summer.
Births on passenger flights are very rare. The US National Library of Medicine figures suggest 74 babies were born on flights between 1929 and 2018. A total of 71 survived delivery.
Caribbean Airlines allows expectant mother to fly without medical clearance until the end of their 32 week. They are prohibited from flying after the 35th week of pregnancy.
