A passenger on a United jet with nearly 200 others onboard was pronounced dead shortly after the pilot made an emergency landing, and it's almost certain the man had COVID.
It's gotta be terrifying for the other passengers ... the man was on the plane shaking and sweating, as the jet was making its way from Orlando to L.A.
The situation became so dire the pilot made an emergency landing in New Orleans. Medics performed CPR on the man, to no avail. He died at a local hospital. One such person on the plane who was helping to administer CPR was Tony Aldapa, who gave us the blow-by-blow from his own POV -- as he was one of just three people rotating for chest compressions.
Check it out ... he tells us they were in the air trying to keep the man alive for nearly an hour before they touched down in NOLA -- where the guy was taken away by waiting paramedics.
Now here's the scary part .... a United spokesperson tells TMZ the passenger declared he was not diagnosed with COVID and had no COVID-related symptoms.
That apparently was not true ... the spokesperson says during the emergency the man's wife was overheard saying her husband did indeed have COVID-related symptoms, including loss of taste and smell.
The incident occurred last Monday, and the CDC is now scrambling to contact the 179 passengers who were onboard.
Originally Published -- 6:59 AM PT