One person died and several others were injured when Singapore Airlines flight SQ321 encountered severe turbulence while en route from London to Singapore but was forced to make an emergency landing at Bangkok.
A 73-year-old British man, Geoff Kitchen, died from a suspected heart attack and dozens more were injured after “sudden extreme turbulence” on the Boeing 777-300ER plane operated by Singapore Airlines.
Kittipong Kittikachorn, the general manager of the Bangkok airport, said that preliminary investigations suggest Kitchen had suffered from a heart condition, and that the autopsy process is ongoing. Several passengers had broken arms, but the majority of injuries were cuts and bruises, he added.
Those injured included citizens from Australia, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Spain, the United States and Ireland.
The flight, SQ321, took off from Heathrow at 10:38 p.m. local time on Monday with 211 passengers and 18 crew members. After encountering extreme turbulence at 37,000 feet., the pilot declared a medical emergency and diverted the flight to Bangkok. As many as 143 were transported via a relief flight to Singapore. The remaining 79 passengers and 6 crew members are still in Bangkok, including those receiving medical care, and their family members.
Thai prime minister said his government would “assist with everything necessary for the injured.” Singapore’s Ministry of Transport said it was examining the incident and would send investigators to Bangkok.
Videos show turbulence aftermath
Passengers on a Singapore Airlines flight hit SQ321 described a sudden, dramatic drop as “all hell broke loose” and the flight cruising at 37,000 feet from London to Singapore turned into a “nightmare”.
Flight tracking data shows the plane rapidly plunged before climbing several hundred feet, then repeated the dip and ascent, for about 90 seconds.
At first, “the flight was perfectly normal,” said passenger Andrew Davies, who was traveling to New Zealand. Suddenly, “The plane just felt like it dropped. It probably only lasted a few seconds, but I remember vividly seeing shoes and iPads and iPhones and cushions and blankets and cutlery and plates and cups flying through the air and crashing to the ceiling,” Davies told CNN.
Photos from the plane showed the cabin in disarray, with papers, cups and water pitchers scattered on the floor, and ceiling panels and oxygen masks hanging loose.
Another passenger who was on the Boeing 777-300ER plane told Reuters that the aircraft started tilting up and shaking suddenly.
“I started bracing for what was happening, and very suddenly there was a very dramatic drop so everyone seated and not wearing a seatbelt was launched immediately into the ceiling,” Dzafran Azmir, a 28-year-old student on board the flight. “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,” he said.
Azmir added that the whole thing was “really, really quick,” which is why people didn’t have time to react, as there were passengers in the plane bathrooms and air crew still standing when the turbulence hit.
Singapore Airlines CEO offer apologies to affected passengers
Earlier this morning, Singapore Airlines CEO Goh Choon Phong apologized for the incident. Goh offered his “deepest apologies to everyone affected” by the “sudden extreme turbulence” they experienced on the airline’s London-Singapore flight which departed on Monday. “We are deeply saddened by this incident,” Goh said in a video posted to social media.
He also offered his “deepest condolences to the family and loved ones” of Geoff Kitchen, the British man who died during the incident. “We are very sorry for the traumatic experience that everyone on board SQ321 went through,” he added.
Singapore Airlines has a good safety record and has consistently been ranked one of the world’s safest carriers.