Postmortem Mobility

Just as in life, Americans are mobile in death—and it seems this mobility is on the rise. Funeral directors and airlines alike claim to have seen an increase in funerals that involve travel.

This postmortem mobility is partly due to an increasing number of immigrants wishing to be buried in their native lands. However, Americans are also mobile after death when they die overseas and are brought back home or when they die in another state and are brought back to their home state for burial.

Delta airlines currently transports around 25,000 bodies a year and claims the demand for postmortem mobility is rising. The Delta Cares division coordinates flights for both an individual’s remains and the funeral attendees. Delta also has a military program, much like other airlines, that brings home fallen soldiers from overseas.

For more information on postmortem mobility, see Michael T. Luongo, Even in Death, Mobility, The New York Times, Oct. 24, 2011.

Special thanks to Joel Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.