One Fatality, Many Hurt as Boeing Jet Encounters ‘Severe Turbulence

One person was killed and more than two dozen others were injured during an international flight from London to Singapore when the Boeing aircraft they were aboard experienced “severe turbulence” on Tuesday.

Singapore Airlines said Tuesday that a Boeing 777-300ER it operates left London’s Heathrow Airport bound for its country of origin when it experienced a rough patch and was forced to land in Thailand, NBC News reported.

While in transit, turbulence injured 30 passengers and left one of them dead.

That person, a reported British national aged 73, was not identified, and a heart attack was suspected as the cause of death.

In total, 18 people were hospitalized when Singapore Airlines Flight 321 landed in Bangkok. Twelve other passengers were receiving treatments at local hospitals.

Singapore Airlines said, “The remaining passengers and crew are being examined and given treatment, where necessary, at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok.”

The airline said the “sudden” and “severe turbulence” turbulence occurred when the Boeing jet hit a pocket of air in the skies over Thailand.

On its Facebook page, Singapore Airlines said in a statement: “There were a total of 211 passengers and 18 crew on board. The nationalities of the passengers are as follows: 56 from Australia, 2 from Canada, 1 from Germany, 3 from India, 2 from Indonesia, 1 from Iceland, 4 from Ireland, 1 from Israel, 16 from Malaysia, 2 from Myanmar, 23 from New Zealand, 5 from the Philippines, 41 from Singapore, 1 from South Korea, 2 from Spain, 47 from the United Kingdom, and 4 from the United States of America.”

The company also offered its “condolences” to those who are mourning the death of the passenger who died.

“Singapore Airlines offers its deepest condolences to the family of the deceased,” the airline said. “We deeply apologize for the traumatic experience that our passengers and crew members suffered on this flight. We are providing all necessary assistance during this difficult time.”

The company dispatched representatives to Thailand to “provide any additional assistance needed.”

NBC News, citing the flight tracking website Flightradar24, reported Singapore Airlines bought the Boeing 777 involved in Tuesday’s incident in 2008.

Singapore’s Transport Safety Investigation Bureau will investigate the deadly flight.

The aircraft was not blamed for the incident, but Boeing said it had been in contact with the airline to offer any support it could.

The incident over Thailand is just the latest public relations headache for Boeing, which has had the safety of its planes questioned amid a year of mishaps and mechanical errors.

A number of whistleblowers have come forward from inside the company and claimed Boeing has not taken safety seriously.

Two of them have died this year, but there has been no link between the deaths and the company’s issues.

Issues with Boeing flights have become a common occurrence during the first two quarters of 2024.