Shocked passengers aboard a Hawaiian Airlines flight from Phoenix to Honolulu, which left three dozen people injured, described how the terrifying journey was like a “roller coaster”.
Officials said 20 people – including a 14-month-old baby – were hospitalized with injuries starting from lacerations and bruises to severe head injuries, including 11 patients who were (*36*) serious condition after Sunday’s flight. One other 16 were also treated for injuries.
Said passenger Kaylee Reyes, who was flying together with her mother Hawaii news now that her mom had just sat down after getting back from the restroom and didn’t get a likelihood to lock her seat belt when the turbulence first rocked the plane.
“The plane shook after which suddenly fell off, such as you were on a roller coaster,” she said. “My mum wasn’t wearing a buckle and flew up and hit the ceiling after which the ground.”
Reyes recalled watching the various passengers with head injuries round her.
“After we landed, paramedics got here and needed to take people away,” she said. “Several people had lacerations on their heads and blood was dripping.”
There have been 10 crew members on board the aircraft, and there have been 278 passengers (*36*) the total cabin, a lot of whom were on holiday with their families. Three flight attendants were among the many injured who were taken to hospitals upon arrival.
At the very least one person has been reported to have passed out, Honolulu Emergency Medical Services Director Jim Ireland said Sunday.
“We’re also very comfortable and feel fortunate that there have been no deaths or other serious injuries. We also very much hope that everyone recovers and makes a full recovery,” Ireland said.
Jazmin Bitanga, who was flying home for vacation, said there have been two altitude drops – one so intense that her boyfriend’s water bottle was thrown into the plane’s ceiling and broke.
“My life flashed before my eyes. I used to be scared,” she said. “I turned around and saw several people bleeding and boiling. There have been people crying throughout me.
Twitter user @lynnxxyy shared a video recorded contained in the plane after the violent shaking, writing: “Probably the most horrific flying experience: very strong turbulence occurred in the course of the flight and a few people suffered head injuries from hitting the ceiling. I’m secure, just very shaken.
The passenger said he suffered a hip injury and suffered “small anxiety attacks” following a “very traumatic event”.
Additional cabin footage taken (*36*) the aftermath of the dramatic flight showed the plane’s interior (*36*) disarray, with cracked plastic panels, supplies littering the ground, and oxygen masks hanging from the ceiling.
Hawaiian Airlines chief operating officer Jon Snook told a news conference that such turbulence is isolated and weird, noting that the airline has not experienced anything prefer it (*36*) recent history.
“Sometimes these air pockets appear without notice. It’s rare to have such an extreme level of turbulence. It was a really extreme case of turbulence (*36*) the air,” said Snook.
“We’re very grateful that the extent of the damage was not critical,” he added. “It might be worse.”
Snook said there was internal damage to the aircraft in the course of the turbulence. He said the fasten seatbelt sign was on on the time, although among the injured weren’t wearing them.
Thomas Vaughan, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service (*36*) Honolulu, said a weather warning was issued for the thunderstorms that covered Oahu and areas that would cover the flight path during turbulence.
The airline was aware of the weather forecast and unstable atmospheric and weather conditions, but received no warning that the actual zone of air where the turbulence occurred “was dangerous (*36*) any way,” Snook said.
He didn’t understand how much altitude the plane lost in the course of the turbulence, saying it will be a part of an investigation involving the National Transportation Safety Board. He said the aircraft’s flight data recorder would supply those details.
He added that an investigation would also have a look at exactly what the passengers and crew were doing on the time.
He said the Airbus A330-200 began its descent immediately after the turbulence and the crew declared a state of emergency resulting from the variety of injured on board. Air traffic controllers gave the flight priority to land.
The aircraft will undergo an intensive inspection and maintenance, mainly to repair components (*36*) the cabin, Snook said.
Snook said he can only speculate if some passengers hit their heads, but that was likely based on injuries and damage to the cabin panelling.
“In case you’re not wearing your seatbelt, you stay where you’re when the plane goes down, and that’s how these injuries occur,” said Snook.
The investigation will investigate what other measures have been taken besides the inclusion of the fasten seatbelt sign to make sure passengers are fastened with seat belts, he said.
In 2019, 37 passengers and flight crew members were injured when an Air Canada flight from Vancouver to Sydney was hit by intense turbulence about two hours outside of Hawaii. The Boeing 777-200 was diverted to Honolulu, where the injured received medical attention. Thirty people were taken to hospitals, nine were seriously injured.
Over the Atlantic, an American Airlines flight from Athens (*36*) 2017 encountered severe turbulence along the Latest York coast. Seven crew members and three passengers were injured.
Most individuals associate turbulence with severe thunderstorms. But essentially the most dangerous type is the so-called clean air turbulence. The wind shear phenomenon can occur (*36*) wispy cirrus clouds and even (*36*) clear air near thunderstorms, as temperature and pressure differences create powerful currents of fast-moving air.
Planes can fly into turbulence (*36*) clear air without notice.
With postal wires