Medical emergency in cruise

오늘부터 Phase 4 — 기체가 아니라 사람이 문제인 상황들입니다. 의료 비상의 핵심은 하나예요: 조종사는 치료를 결정하지 않는다, 이송을 결정한다. 의료 판단은 의료인에게 맡기고, 우리는 가장 빨리 병원에 닿게 하는 것. 문법은 판단을 말하는 whether + to부정사입니다.

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1. Scenario

I was the First Officer of HL123, in the cruise, when the purser called the flight deck: a passenger had severe chest pain, was sweating heavily, and was barely responding.

We asked the cabin crew to start first aid and made a PA for a doctor. A doctor on board came forward, and while she attended to the passenger with the onboard medical kit, we contacted our company's medical advice service. Both the doctor and the ground service said the same thing: this man needs a hospital, soon.

That settled the question of whether to continue or to divert. We declared PAN-PAN, told ATC we had a medical emergency on board, and asked for the nearest suitable airport with a good hospital. ATC gave us a priority descent and direct routing, and asked for our souls on board and fuel remaining.

We also asked for paramedics to meet the aircraft at the gate — not the runway — and passed the patient's condition ahead so the hospital could prepare. After landing, the paramedics boarded first, and the passenger was in an ambulance within minutes.

2. At a Glance

English — In the cruise, a passenger developed severe chest pain. We found a doctor on board, connected our company's medical advice service, and when both said "hospital, soon," the decision was made for us: PAN-PAN, divert to the nearest suitable airport with a good hospital. ATC gave us priority, and the paramedics met the aircraft at the gate with the patient's details already passed ahead. The rule: pilots do not decide the treatment — they decide the transport.

한국어 — 순항 중 승객이 심한 흉통을 일으켰습니다. 기내 의사를 찾고, 회사 의료 자문 서비스를 연결했으며, 둘 다 "빨리 병원으로"라고 하자 판단은 끝난 것 — PAN-PAN 선언, 좋은 병원이 있는 가장 가까운 적합 공항으로 회항. ATC가 우선권을 줬고, 환자 정보를 미리 전달해 구급대가 게이트에서 기다렸습니다. 원칙 — 조종사는 치료를 결정하지 않는다, 이송을 결정한다.

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3. Key Verbs

complain

뜻: (증상을) 호소하다

• A passenger complained of severe chest pain.
• He had been complaining of dizziness since boarding.

collapse

뜻: 쓰러지다

• The passenger nearly collapsed in his seat.
• If he had collapsed completely, we would have used the AED.

attend

뜻: (환자를) 돌보다

• A doctor on board attended to the passenger.
• He was attended to for the rest of the flight.

contact

뜻: 연락하다

• We contacted our company's medical advice service.
• The ground doctor was contacted through the company frequency.

recommend

뜻: 권고하다

• Both doctors recommended an immediate diversion.
• Landing as soon as possible was recommended.

divert

뜻: 회항하다

• We diverted to the nearest suitable airport.
• The decision to divert was easy once the doctors agreed.

stabilize

뜻: (상태를) 안정시키다

• The doctor worked to stabilize him during the descent.
• His condition stabilized after oxygen was given.

worsen

뜻: 악화되다

• His condition could worsen at any time.
• The symptoms worsened during the first few minutes.

arrange

뜻: 준비시키다, 주선하다

• ATC arranged an ambulance for our arrival.
• Everything was arranged before we touched down.

board

뜻: 탑승하다

• The paramedics boarded first, before anyone else.
• They boarded through the front door with their equipment.

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4. Key Expressions & Collocations

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5. Vocabulary

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6. Sentence Frames

빈칸만 갈아끼우면 다른 승객·의료 시나리오에도 그대로 씁니다.

• The cabin crew reported a passenger with ____. → The cabin crew reported a passenger with severe chest pain.
• We made a PA, and ____ came forward. → We made a PA, and a doctor on board came forward.
• The question was whether to ____ or to ____. → The question was whether to continue or to divert.
• We asked for ____ to meet the aircraft at ____. → We asked for paramedics to meet the aircraft at the gate.
• We passed ____ ahead, so ____. → We passed the patient's condition ahead, so the hospital could prepare.

오늘의 표현 포인트 — "The question was whether to continue or to divert." 판단의 순간을 한 문장으로 보여주는 틀 — 의료뿐 아니라 모든 회항 시나리오에서 씁니다.

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7. Common Mistakes → Better Phrasing

한국인이 자주 쓰는 틀리거나 약한 표현을, 시험에서 통하는 표현으로 바꿔 익히세요.

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8. Grammar Point — whether / what / who + to부정사

판단과 선택을 짧게 말하는 틀입니다. "~할지 말지", "무엇을 할지"가 모두 이 구조예요.

• The question was whether to continue or to divert.
• We knew who to contact for medical advice.
• The cabin crew knew exactly what to do.

핵심: whether/what/who + to 동사원형 = "~할지". The question was whether to divert — 이 한 문장이 판단 장면 전체를 요약합니다.

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9. Model Answer — Q1

"What happened to your aircraft? Explain the nature of the incident."

90초 뼈대 — ① 무슨 일(2문장) ② 조치·상호작용(34문장) ③ 결과 + 한 줄(12문장). 아래는 그 뼈대의 예시입니다.

During the cruise, the cabin crew reported a passenger with severe chest pain — sweating heavily and barely responding. We made a PA for a doctor, and one came forward to help.

While the doctor attended to him, we contacted our company's medical advice service, and both recommended landing as soon as possible. So the question of whether to continue was settled: we declared PAN-PAN, asked ATC for the nearest suitable airport with a good hospital, and got a priority descent with direct routing. We also asked for paramedics to meet the aircraft at the gate and passed the patient's condition ahead.

We landed about thirty minutes later, and the paramedics boarded first and took him straight to hospital. We are not doctors — our job was to get him to one, fast.

10. Model Answer — Q2

"How do you think ATC handled the situation? Could it have been handled differently?"

Q2 = ATC 평가로 의견 표현을 익히는 자리. 아래는 한 예시 — 외워서 그대로 쓰지 말고, 시작·마무리 표현은 자유롭게 바꿔 보세요.

For a medical case, speed is everything — and speed is what we got. The priority descent and direct routing came the moment we declared PAN-PAN, and the medical side was handled properly too: our patient details were passed ahead, and the ambulance was ready when we arrived.

If anything, the first plan had the paramedics meeting us on the runway, and we had to ask again to move them to the gate. For a medical case the gate should be the default — the patient leaves through the door, not on the runway. Still, once we asked, it was changed in seconds, and the handover to the paramedics was smooth.

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11. Follow-up Q&A

1. How do line pilots usually handle a medical emergency? → Find a doctor on board, connect the company's medical advice service, and let the medical people drive the decision. If they say land, you land — pilots fly the aircraft, not the treatment.
2. Why PAN-PAN and not MAYDAY? → The aircraft was safe and fully under control, so it was urgency, not distress. PAN-PAN medical is the standard call for a serious patient.
3. Why did you insist on the gate instead of the runway? → The patient leaves through the door, so the ambulance belongs at the door. Meeting on the runway only adds time and confusion.
4. What information did you pass ahead? → The symptoms, what the doctor had done so far, and the passenger's age — enough for the hospital to prepare before we landed.

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12. Shadowing Sentences

각 문장을 3~5번 소리 내어 따라 하세요.

1. The cabin crew reported a passenger with severe chest pain.
2. He was sweating heavily and barely responding.
3. We made a PA, and a doctor on board came forward.
4. We contacted our company's medical advice service.
5. Both recommended landing as soon as possible.
6. The question was whether to continue or to divert.
7. We declared PAN-PAN and asked for the nearest suitable airport.
8. We asked for paramedics to meet the aircraft at the gate.
9. We passed the patient's condition ahead, so the hospital could prepare.
10. Pilots do not decide the treatment — they decide the transport.

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다 읽었으면, 위 문장 구조 몇 개를 골라 30초만 직접 말해보세요. 화면에서 녹음하고 ICAO 6영역 채점을 받아보고 싶다면 EPTA Coach에서 1회차를 무료로 열어둡니다.