Ammon News - A woman has given birth on a flight traveling from Jamaica to New York City - but whether the baby will be a U.S. citizen remains an unanswered question.

The extraordinary event took place April 4 on board Caribbean Airlines flight BW005 from Kingston to John F. Kennedy International Airport. In audio, aired by CBS News, a pilot can be heard telling air traffic control about the new addition to the passenger manifest.

As the plane makes its approach at an altitude of 2,000 feet, an air traffic controller asks: “Is it out yet?”

The pilot responds: “Yes, sir.” The controller then suggests that the passenger name the baby Kennedy, after the airport.

A baby born over U.S. airspace is automatically granted U.S. citizenship but the Caribbean Airline flight’s precise location at the moment of birth has not been confirmed.

Medical personnel later met the passenger and newborn at the gate.

The mother and baby, who have not been identified, have become part of a very exclusive club: there have been fewer than 100 births on commercial aircraft.

Caribbean Airlines said in a statement: “Caribbean Airlines confirms that there was a medical event onboard flight BW005 of April 4, 2026, during which a passenger gave birth while enroute from Kingston, Jamaica, to New York. Upon arrival, the mother and newborn were attended to by medical personnel and are receiving the necessary care.

Regarding the child’s legal status, Miami-based immigration attorney Juan Carlos Rivera told The Independent: "The key legal principle here is jus soli, 'right of the soil,' which is embedded in the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

“U.S. airspace is considered U.S. territory, so if this baby was born while the plane was within 12 nautical miles of the U.S. coastline, she or he would automatically qualify for U.S. citizenship by birthright. The mother wouldn't need to 'claim' it if the birth occurred in U.S. airspace — citizenship attaches at the moment of birth."

He added: "Establishing citizenship in this scenario requires documentation of where the birth occurred. The family would likely need flight data such as GPS coordinates logged by the aircraft at the time of delivery, to pinpoint whether the birth occurred within or outside U.S. airspace.

The Independent