A MAN IS recovering in hospital after the flight on which he was travelling diverted to Shannon Airport this morning to seek urgent medical assistance for him.

The passenger, believed to be in his 50s, is understood to have been successfully resuscitated after he suffered a suspected cardiac arrest on board the transatlantic flight.

Lufthansa flight LH-411 was travelling from JFK International Airport in New York to Munich, Germany at the time.

The Airbus A340-600 jet was about 600 km southwest of Shannon when the crew declared a medical emergency at around 3.30am.

The pilots made contact with air traffic controllers at the Irish Aviation Authority’s North Atlantic Communications Centre at Ballygirreen in Co Clare and advised them of their emergency.

The crew reported they had a man on board who had suffered a cardiac incident and that efforts were being made to resuscitate him.

The crew requested clearance to divert to Shannon and requested that emergency medical services be alerted and standing by for their arrival.

The jet landed at 4.15am and was met at the terminal by National Ambulance Service (NAS) paramedics and airport staff. The man was removed to University Hospital Limerick (UHL) for treatment. No details on his condition are available.

The flight continued its journey to Munich at 6.2 0am.

Shannon Airport has seen an increase in medical emergencies this year.

So far in 2019, the Airport has dealt with over 60 unscheduled landings 22 of which have been medical diversions. Shannon handled 16 medical emergencies in 2018.