Earlier this week, a Singapore Airlines flight from London to Singapore was plunged into disarray and compelled to execute an emergency landing in Bangkok after encountering severe turbulence that tragically claimed the life of a 73-year-old British man and resulted in injuries to over 104 other passengers. Within a brief span, the Boeing 777-300ER descended nearly 6,000 feet.
Oxygen masks were deployed, but some of the containers holding them also fell, as per the Wall Street Journal. Passengers were hurled across the cabin. The level of force involved was immense. Now, eyewitnesses on the flight are recounting the harrowing moments they experienced.
Ali Bukhari, a 27-year-old Australian engineer who was honeymooning with his wife, shared his account with the Wall Street Journal about their experience:
“My wife and I thought we were going to die,” shared Bukhari. “We didn’t believe we would survive.”
Bukhari and his wife escaped unscathed due to wearing their seat belts. However, many others sustained serious injuries. Faces were streaked with blood. Bukhari described witnessing a man receiving chest compressions on the floor.
At that moment, he feared for the integrity of the aircraft. Though tempted to look out a window for external damage, he refrained out of dread for what he might witness. Turbulence, he reasoned, couldn’t inflict such extensive harm.
The flight encountered one of the most severe turbulence-related incidents in history, with the 73-year-old passenger’s demise marking the first turbulence-related fatality on a commercial flight in almost thirty years. 104 more passengers received medical attention in Bangkok, with 20 individuals still in intensive care.
Further details on the injuries sustained by passengers, as reported by WSJ:
At a hospital where many victims were admitted, six individuals were diagnosed with skull and brain injuries, while 22 suffered spinal cord or spine injuries. Some patients exhibited signs of paralysis, with the permanence of the damage still undetermined, stated Dr. Adinun Kittiratanapaibool, director of Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital, a private medical facility. At least 17 individuals underwent surgical procedures.
The publication also interviewed Keith Davis, a 59-year-old landscape architect from Australia, who expressed shock at the incident. Davis was adjusting his seat when he noticed his wife’s water glass trembling. Before he could react, both he and his wife were airborne.
His wife collided with an overhead luggage compartment before landing in the aisle. Davis suffered a head injury, penetrating a ceiling panel and returning to his seat.
[…]
He immediately checked on his wife’s well-being, only to realize he was bleeding profusely over her. His wife, Kerry Jordan, remains in intensive care but is stable and conscious. Davis sustained minor injuries, including a laceration on his forehead causing significant bleeding and a black eye, along with localized shoulder discomfort.
In the chaotic aftermath, his primary focus was stabilizing his wife. He secured her in place by bracing his legs around her to prevent any movement until they reached safety. The couple, having just returned from vacation in the U.K., now simply wishes to return home—albeit necessitating another flight.
WSJ also interviewed a passenger, Andrew Davies, aged 54, who emerged relatively unscathed. Consequently, he assisted other passengers in need.
Davies recalled the seat-belt sign illuminating just before the sudden descent. “It was an extremely abrupt drop,” he remarked. The episode seemed to conclude as swiftly as it commenced.
“There was hardly any time for me to ponder, ‘Is this going to stop?’” he recounted.
Navigating the aircraft to aid the injured, Davies observed passengers scrambling in confusion, maneuvering around fallen objects and individuals sprawled on the floor.
Numerous injuries were evident, such as a man in business class with a head laceration and another clutching his chest in agony. A woman with a back injury screamed in pain, while another individual with an ear laceration bled onto her white garment.
Davies and fellow passengers relocated an unconscious elderly gentleman from his seat to a spacious area near an emergency exit. A passenger possessing medical expertise summoned a defibrillator, delivered by a limping cabin crew member. CPR was administered for at least 20 minutes until a decision was made to halt, as Davies recollected.
“That’s my husband, that’s my husband,” reiterated his widow incessantly.
Approximately 15 minutes post-incident, the pilot—visibly shaken—entered the cabin and divulged the nightmarish events he had witnessed. An inside view of the aftermath, as reported by Wall Street Journal:
The turbulence, lasting approximately a minute, rendered the cabin akin to a hurricane-stricken site, with food and beverages splattered across overhead compartments, fallen ceiling panels, and internal components—pipes and tubing—disarrayed.
In corridors and galley areas, food trays had dislodged from racks. Strewn across the floor were chips packets, water bottles, shattered wine glasses, coffee cups, kettles, apples, and sliced kiwi.
For additional insights, it is recommended to visit the Wall Street Journal for more narratives on the events aboard Singapore Airlines flight 321 and an array of visuals captured during the ordeal. The incidents recounted are undeniably alarming and warrant attention.
