Body of dad who died on Jet2 flight home to Liverpool finally returned to UK

Nearly two weeks after his heartbreaking passing, the family of a dad who died on a flight returning from Bulgaria has confirmed that his son's body has been brought back to the UK.

Chris Neill was on his way to Liverpool John Lennon Airport from Burgas, Bulgaria, on Monday, September 16, when he experienced chest pains while flying with his two sons, Reece, 19, and Archie, eight, along with Reece's girlfriend.

The Jet2 plane had to make an urgent landing in Cologne, Germany, where it is believed the father of two suffered a major heart attack. An off-duty paramedic who was present during the incident has now shared details of what happened.

A week after his death, Chris's father, Mal Neill, honoured his son as he and Chris's mother, Lesley, desperately try to gather funds to bring their 40 year old son's body back from Germany.

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Chris's dad, Mal, aged 68, has now confirmed that his son's body has been returned to the UK. Speaking to the ECHO, he said: "Chris's body arrived back yesterday but he still has to be cleared by a UK-based coroner as the German one didn't put a cause of death on the certificate. There may have to be an autopsy yet which will delay us being able to see him and any funeral."

In his tribute, Mal from Runcorn, lauded Jet2's efforts and appealed for financial support to repatriate his son from Germany, where his remains were. He shared: "He was a staunch Everton fan and brought his children up as Everton fans.", reports the Liverpool Echo.

"He lived life to the full and he was bubbly. He was 6ft 4in and went to the gym every day, he was massive. He lived for his children and when I was going through photos for the GoFundMe there are so many of him and his sons."

"He was full of fun, bubbly, he would do anything for anybody. I know people say that when someone dies but he would have. He was really liked by everyone."

Since the tragic news of Chris's death emerged, the GoFundMe page set up in his honour has nearly hit the £24,000 mark at the time of writing, with proceeds aimed at covering the repatriation costs, medical bills incurred in Germany, and funeral expenses. Mal also confirmed that any additional funds will be channelled into trusts for Chris's sons.