24 passengers and crew injured as flight ‘drops suddenly’
A passenger on board a plane that dropped altitude suddenly mid-flight has described the chaos.
About 50 people were treated at Auckland airport yesterday after the Latam flight from Sydney to Auckland experienced what the airline called a “strong movement”.
The incident saw a large emergency response, with 10 emergency vehicle sent by St John Ambulance to the scene.
Just two hours into the three hour flight “all of a sudden the plane just dropped out of the sky”, passenger Brian Jokat told Stuff.
Jokat said he woke up and his seat neighbour was on the ceiling of the plane.
“His back is on the ceiling and he’s up in the air and then he drops down and hits his head on the armrest. The whole plane is screaming.
“The plane then started taking a nose dive and I was just thinking ‘OK this is it, we’re done’.”
Jokat said when he looked over his shoulder he saw people in the aisles lying down. There was no lean-in for a ‘strap in ladies and gentlemen’ this was just wack out of nowhere.
“The ceiling’s broken from people’s heads and bodies hitting it. Basically neck braces were being put on people, guys' heads were cut and they were bleeding. It was just crazy.”
Jokat said there was no turbulence after the incident and once the plane landed the pilot came to the back of the plane in “shock”.
“I asked ‘what happened?’ and he said ‘my gauges just blanked out, I lost all of my ability to fly the plane’.”
Jokat said he was lucky to have had his seatbelt on and to come out unscathed.
St John Ambulance said about 50 people were treated at the airport, with one patient in a serious condition and the remainder in a moderate to minor condition. So far, 13 patients have been taken to Middlemore Hospital by ambulance, it said.
Latam said the plane had suffered a technical problem.
“As a result of the incident, some passengers and cabin crew were affected. They received immediate assistance and were evaluated or treated by medical staff at the airport as needed,” the airline told Stuff.
“Latam regrets the inconvenience and injury this situation may have caused its passengers, and reiterates its commitment to safety as a priority within the framework of its operational standards,” the airline said.
The plane landed at Auckland Airport as scheduled.