- A Ryanair flight from Belgium to Spain diverted while over French airspace.
- A passenger on the flight gave birth to a baby, Flightradar24 reported.
- Babies born in the air sometimes receive free flights or loyalty points.
A Ryanair Boeing 737 Max 8.Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images
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The flight from Brussels to the Spanish province of Castelln was diverted to Limoges in southwestern France.
Flight 4797 took off from the Belgian capital at about 1:40 p.m. on Thursday, according to data from Flightradar24.
It was then supposed to be a journey of less than two hours, mostly through French airspace. But the Boeing 737 landed in Limoges an hour after takeoff, per Flightradar24.
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The flight-tracking site and local news outlets reported that a woman gave birth on the plane.
Ryanair didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
The Boeing 737 took off about 90 minutes after landing in Limoges. Passengers reached Castelln less than two hours later than scheduled, according to flight-tracking data.
Another three flights scheduled on the same aircraft on Thursday were also delayed because of the diversion's knock-on effects.
Births on planes are rare, given that airlines have strict rules about flying while pregnant. Ryanair says it requires a letter from a doctor or a midwife from 28 weeks of pregnancy, while travel is not permitted beyond 36 weeks.
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While there is a popular myth that being born on a flight might give the child free trips in the future, this is rarely the case.
CNN reported that Thai Airways, Asia Pacific Airlines, AirAsia, and Polar Airlines were the only carriers known to have given a newborn free flights for life.
Shona Owen, who was born on a British Airways flight in 1990, told the outlet she received two free first-class flights to Australia on her 18th birthday, allowing her to visit her grandmother.
And in 2016, Cebu Pacific Air said it gave a baby born on one of its flights a million frequent-flyer points.
