Association of Flight Attendants-CWA

Mesa Air and American Airlines also recognize Flight Attendants

DALLAS (January 10, 2017) — Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA) members working American Flight 5783, operated by Mesa Airlines, today were recognized by Mesa Airlines and American Airlines for delivering a baby inflight in the final days of 2017. 

“Flight Attendants Jo’Vonna Gaines and Wendie Dyal are excellent examples of the work of aviation’s first responders, helping to safely deliver our newest passenger safely to Dallas on Flight 5783. Flight Attendants perform life-saving medical response onboard every day—professionalism and experience matter in these critical moments. And some days, we help bring new life into this world. Kudos to Jo’Vonna and Wendie,” stated Sara Nelson, AFA international president.

“I am extremely proud of our flight attendants and the work they do every day.  We applaud Wendie and Jo’Vonna for their heroic actions and the way they represented all of their Mesa colleagues who are ready to serve as aviation’s first responders on any Mesa flight.  We congratulate the parents and take pride in Mesa’s safe ‘delivery’ of our youngest passenger to Dallas,” stated Mesa Airlines Chairman and CEO, Jonathan Ornstein.

Flight Attendants Jo’Vonna Gaines and Wendie Dyal were informed by a concerned passenger that another passenger was having labor contractions. Jo’Vonna and Wendie timed the contractions — a minute apart. Flight Attendants notified the Captain and requested MedLink assistance. At first, no passengers responded to the call for assistance. Only when Jo’Vonna translated the announcement for help to Spanish did a nurse come forward to assist. The Flight Attendants created space for the mother to deliver. Wendie monitored the mother’s vitals, while Jo’Vonna assisted the nurse during the delivery. Baby Lazarus was born inflight. The father held the baby for landing. EMTs met the plane upon landing in Dallas and took the family to the hospital. 

Mesa AFA Flight Attendants ratified a new contract in 2017 that turned a short-term job into a career for aviation's first responders at Mesa. Mesa and its passengers can now benefit from the experience of career Flight Attendants. Flight 5783 was an American Eagle flight operated by Mesa Airlines from Morelia International Airport (MLM) to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) on Thursday, December 28, 2017.

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The Association of Flight Attendants is the Flight Attendant union. Focused 100 percent on Flight Attendant issues, AFA has been the leader in advancing the Flight Attendant profession for 72 years. Serving as the voice for Flight Attendants in the workplace, in the aviation industry, in the media and on Capitol Hill, AFA has transformed the Flight Attendant profession by raising wages, benefits and working conditions. Nearly 50,000 Flight Attendants come together to form AFA, part of the 700,000-member strong Communications Workers of America (CWA), AFL-CIO. Visit us at www.afacwa.org.