Shock has been caused by a new tragedy in the air with one person dead and dozens injured on a flight from London to Singapore operated by Singapore Airlines.
One passenger died and dozens were injured when an airline aircraft encountered severe turbulence during a flight, resulting in an emergency landing in Bangkok.
Passengers aboard the Singapore Airlines plane have called it a “dramatic dive” that “ejected” those not wearing seatbelts to the cabin ceiling.
The airline said the Boeing 777 plane with more than 200 passengers and 18 crew members experienced severe turbulence on its way from Heathrow Airport to Singapore.
Unconfirmed reports from airline monitoring websites said the aircraft fell into a vacuum, causing it to plummet about 1,800 metres (6,000 feet) due to bad weather while crossing the Andaman Sea approaching Thailand.
Images from the scene show the extent of the turbulence and the panic that prevailed inside the aircraft, which landed in Bangkok at 15:45 local time (11:00 GMT).
Reports put the number of injured at 30.
In a statement, Singapore Airlines noted: “Singapore Airlines flight SQ321, en route from London (Heathrow) to Singapore on 20 May 2024, experienced severe turbulence en route. We can confirm that there are injuries and one fatality on board the Boeing 777-300ER. A total of 211 passengers and 18 crew members were on board. Singapore Airlines extends its deepest condolences to the family of the deceased.”
A later statement said: “We deeply apologise for the traumatic experience suffered by our passengers and crew members on this flight. We are providing all necessary assistance during this difficult time. We are working with our colleagues and local authorities in Thailand to provide the necessary assistance.”
Dzafran Azmir, a 28-year-old student, who was on board the aircraft, gave a shocking description to Reuters: ‘Suddenly the aircraft started to pitch and shake, so I started to prepare for what was going to happen, and very suddenly there was a very dramatic fall, so everyone who was sitting and not wearing a seatbelt was thrown to the ceiling. Some people hit their heads on the luggage compartments, where the lights and the masks are, and they broke them.”
According to industry experts, deaths caused by turbulence are extremely rare on international scheduled flights, but there have been serious injuries – most often to crew members.
Weather conditions in the region have been linked to turbulence in the past. Two crew members on a British Airways flight returning from Singapore to London in June 2023 broke their legs after being ejected into the cabin during severe turbulence over the Bay of Bengal.
