1 dead after severe turbulence hit Singapore Airlines
1 person was killed and 71 injured after severe turbulence hit Singapore Airlines from UK to Singapore and was forced to make an emergency landing in Bangkok.
The Boeing 777 with 211 passengers and 18 crew members was then diverted to Bangkok, according to a post on the Singapore Airlines Facebook page. The person who died during this severe turbulence was a 73-year-old British citizen.
Photo courtsey : Reuters
Singapore Airlines said in a Facebook post (https://www.facebook.com/singaporeair/posts/pfbid02FCNEhVcL8V25vTVbzKepuBfYZcX4XBw9frvqX65KUMsxrEMnLDRMRXqoy8JMEFJdl)that flight 321, operating from London’s Heathrow Airport (LHR), was on its way to Singapore Changi Airport (SIN) when it encountered the “sudden, extreme turbulence” over the Irrawaddy Basin about 10 hours into the flight at about 37,000 feet. The pilot then declared a medical emergency and diverted the flight to Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) in Bangkok.
The airline offered “its deepest condolences to the family of the deceased” and said it was providing assistance to all passengers who were effected by severe turbulence and also crew from the flight.
Video from the Thai airport showed passengers coming down a ramp onto the tarmac from the plane, which was surrounded by emergency vehicles. Several people could be seen laying on a tarp under a tent in a triage area crowded by airport and medical staff.
The airline offered “its deepest condolences to the family of the deceased” and said it was providing assistance to all passengers and crew from the flight.
Photo courtsey : Reuters
Boeing also offered condolences to the family of the passenger who died in a statement posted on social media. The U.S. aerospace giant said it was in contact with Singapore Airlines and ready to support the carrier as it looked into the incident.
“Suddenly the aircraft starts tilting up and there was shaking, so I started bracing for what was happening, and very suddenly there was a very dramatic drop, so everyone seated and not wearing seatbelt was launched immediately into the ceiling,” passenger Dzafran Azmir told the Reuters news agency. “Some people hit their heads on the baggage cabins overhead and dented it. They hit the places where lights and masks are and broke straight through it.”
Video Courtsey : Talk TV (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xiJG0b9rsUM)
Turbulence occurs when a plane flies through clashing bodies of air moving at widely different speeds.
With light and moderate turbulence passengers might feel a strain against their sea tbelt, and unsecured items could move around the cabin.
But in severe cases turbulence can throw passengers around the cabin, causing severe injuries and occasionally death.
In March 2023, severe turbulence on a private jet resulted in the death of a former White House official, just days after seven people were transported to hospitals after a separate commercial flight hit significant turbulence.
In July 2023, seven people were injured on a Hawaiian Airlines flight to Sydney, Australia, when the plane was buffeted by severe turbulence, and 36 people were injured on a Hawaiian Airlines flight from Arizona to Honolulu in December 2022, with 20 people taken to emergency rooms.
A September 2022 study predicts that clear-air turbulence will increase significantly around the globe by the period 2050-2080, in particular along the busiest flight routes, and the strongest type of turbulence will increase the most.
Experts noted that such injuries often occur when passengers are not wearing seat belts and the pilot cannot give an advanced warning due to the unpredictable nature of turbulence as indicated by weather radar.