Home / Health / Organ Transplant Flies on Military Plane Amidst 9/11
Organ Transplant Flies on Military Plane Amidst 9/11
13 Sep
Summary
- A liver transplant for an infant took flight on a military cargo plane.
- The urgent organ transport occurred during the 9/11 attacks when civilian flights were grounded.
- Kareena, the infant recipient, celebrated 25 years post-transplant in 2026.
On September 11, 2001, as the United States grappled with devastating attacks, a life-saving mission unfolded for six-month-old Kareena in Houston. She urgently needed a liver transplant, but the organ was in Nashville, and civilian air travel was halted nationwide.
The donor liver was transported aboard a Tennessee Air National Guard C-130 cargo plane. This crucial flight bypassed grounded civilian aircraft, ensuring the organ reached Texas Children's Hospital in time for Kareena's transplant.
Kareena, born with biliary atresia, faced critical illness and had spent most of her young life hospitalized. The transplant offered her a chance at survival.
Despite the national crisis, a collaborative effort involving transplant coordinators and the National Guard ensured the organ's safe journey. This act of good will enabled Kareena to live.
Twenty-five years later, in 2026, Kareena is thriving. She has graduated college and is pursuing health policy, inspired by the strangers who saved her life. She maintains contact with those involved in her transplant, including the transplant coordinator and surgeon.
