One passenger died and dozens were injured on a terrifying Singapore Airlines flight that encountered severe turbulence and dropped dramatically.
The incident happened Tuesday as the Boeing 777 was en route from London to Singapore. Without warning, the plane suddenly descended. One passenger, Andrew Davies of the U.K., recounted the frantic efforts of those on board to provide medical assistance, including to a 73-year-old British man who suffered a fatal heart attack.
“My heart goes out to the gentleman who lost his life. … Awful experience,” Mr. Davies wrote on X. He described how passengers with medical training attempted CPR and called for a defibrillator. “Another passenger laid flat in the aisle further behind me. Not sure what happened with them. Wish I could have helped more.”
Mr. Davies further described the chaos: “People’s belongings scattered, coffee and water splattered the ceiling. Surreal. So many injured people. Head lacerations, bleeding ears. A lady was screaming in pain with a bad back. I couldn’t help her.”
Photos posted online showed passengers gripping their seats in fear and a flight attendant with a bloody nose.
The plane made an emergency landing in Bangkok. Tracking data from Flightradar24 revealed that the aircraft plummeted from 37,000 feet to 31,000 feet within five minutes while flying over the Andaman Sea in the northeastern Indian Ocean.
Thai officials reported that first responders rushed onboard to treat the injured passengers. According to Kittipong Kittikachorn, general manager of Suvarnabhumi Airport, seven passengers were severely injured, 23 passengers sustained moderate injuries and nine crew members were moderately hurt, the New York Post reported.
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