
On Wednesday, David Goodall boarded a plane in Perth bound for Europe. He’s flying there to end his life.
The Western Australian scientist doesn’t have a terminal illness, but last month he celebrated his 104th birthday. He says his health has deteriorated recently – and he wants to die before it gets any worse.
“I no longer find much joy in life. Up to, even up to, say, the age of 90 I was enjoying life. But not now,” Professor Goodall told the ABC.

On Wednesday night, the academic said his final goodbyes to much of his friends and family at Perth Airport. He then boarded the flight to France, where he will visit family before travelling to Switzerland. There, euthanasia - or voluntary assisted dying - is legal, and on May 10 he will be helped to end his life at Life Circle in the city of Basel.
Before he departed, Professor Goodall told Nine News his three grandsons and daughter Karen were among those seeing him off.
"I should be glad when I get on the plane - so far, so good."
While sitting in his wheelchair, he then hugged each of the people gathered to see him off and wished them a wonderful life before boarding the plane assisted by a nurse.
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Professor Goodall, who was born in London on April 4, 1914 and moved to Australia in 1948, is Australia's oldest scientist. Up until recently, he'd been working as an Emeritus Professor in ecology at Edith Cowan University. In fact, in 2016 he made global headlines when the university tried to fire him over his age, but reinstated his position following backlash.