Man Dies of Heart Attack on Flight From Vegas

A 64 year-old Queens, N.Y., man went into cardiac arrrest and died mid-air.

ByABC News
August 28, 2010, 6:04 PM

Aug. 28, 2010— -- A 64-year-old New York man died early this morning on an AirTran Airways flight from Las Vegas bound for Milwaukee, and the passenger's death forced the pilot to immediately reroute the plane to Denver International Airport.

Stephen Enves, of Queens, N.Y., was traveling with his wife when he went into cardiac arrest at approximately 2:50 a.m., according to a spokeswoman for the Denver airport.

Denver International Airport spokeswoman Laura Coale said flight 776 was diverted to Denver and Enves was immediately transported to a Denver Health ambulance when the plane reached the ground.

The Denver Police Department conducted a death investigation and concluded that Enves' death resulted from natural causes.

AirTran spokeswoman Quinnie Jenkins told The Associated Press that Denver International was the closest possible airport for the plane to land, but declined to release any additional information on how far into the flight the man died or how the incident was discovered.

Witnesses told ABC Denver affiliate KMGH-TV that a passenger attempted CPR on Enves and the plane's crew tried to revive him with the portable defibrillator but without success.

The flight to Milwaukee resumed three and a half hours later at approximately 6:30 a.m.