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Singapore’s prime minister has promised a “thorough investigation” after a British man died during severe turbulence on a Singapore Airlines flight from Heathrow Airport.
The passenger who died has been named as 73-year-old Geoffrey Kitchen, who suffered a suspected heart attack on the flight according to a spokesperson for Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, where the plane was diverted.
Seven other people were seriously injured, with dozens more suffering minor injuries. Many of those injured are still being treated in Bangkok, including six Britons who are being treated in intensive care units.
According to Singapore Airlines, the flight encountered “sudden extreme turbulence” over Myanmar’s Irrawaddy Basin at 37,000 feet about 10 hours after departure and the pilot declared a medical emergency, with flight tracking data showing the plane plummeted 6,000 feet in a matter of minutes.
Singapore Airlines’ chief executive has issued a video apology to all the passengers on board. “We are very sorry for the traumatic experience that everyone on board SQ321 went through,” Goh Choon Phong said, while offering his condolences for the death of the British passenger.
Were you on the flight? Email [email protected]
‘Thrown to the roof and then to the floor’
More tales of the drama on board the Singapore Airlines flight are being shared today by passengers.
They include an Australian who told Sky News that the seatbelt sign had come on just ahead of the turbulence, but she could not act in time because she had been asleep. Thirty-year-old Teandra Tukhunen, speaking from a hospital with her left arm in a sling, said she had been “thrown to the roof and then to the floor.” “It was just so quick, over in a couple of seconds and then you’re just shocked. Everyone’s pretty freaked out,” she said.
Six Britons in intensive care
Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital, where most of the injured were taken, said 20 people were being treated in intensive care while 27 others have been discharged.
The intensive care patients include six Britons, six Malaysians, three Australians, two Singaporeans and one person each from Hong Kong, New Zealand, and the Philippines, it said.
The hospital said nine people underwent surgery Tuesday and five more operations were expected to be completed Wednesday.
It said it had provided 104 people with medical care, including 19 at its clinic at the airport.
The investigation – wo is taking part?
Aviation investigators have arrived in Bangkok to learn how and why severe turbulence sent a Singapore Airlines plane into a sudden dive that tossed passengers and crew around the cabin.
Officers from Singapore‘s Transport Safety Investigation Bureau arrived in Bangkok late Tuesday, Singapore Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat said on Wednesday.
He added that the US National Transportation Safety Board is also sending an accredited representative and four technical advisors to support the investigation because the incident involved a Boeing plane.
‘Ordeal nearly over’
Andrew Davies was among those onboard the Boeing 777-300ER when the flight was forced to make an emergency landing after severe turbulence.
Landing in Bangkok, he took to social media, and wrote on X: “I was on that flight and helped as much as I could. Those not injured (including me) are in a holding area at Bangkok airport. My heart goes out to the gentleman who lost his life and his poor wife. Awful experience.”
But today, he updated those who contacted him to say he was now travelling onto New Zealand.
He wrote: “Thanks for all the nice posts and personal messages. Ordeal nearly over. Waiting to travel on to NZ from Singapore. Singapore Airlines couldn’t have been more accommodating. Very impressed. Thoughts with others worse off than me. Ultimately- I am just a delayed business passenger.”
‘Proper investigation’ required, says Simon Calder
As officials begin their investigation into what happened on the Singapore Airlines flight that made an emergency landing in Bangkok after severe turbulence, The Independent’s travel correspondent expressed his concern on the incident.
Speaking to GB News, he said: “This particular event, you have a combination of extremely violent turbulence and a lot of movement. It was extremely distressing, and so many injuries as well as the loss of Mr Kitchen.”
He added: “Such tragic circumstances, and clearly it needs to be properly investigated to find out what the sequence of events were. I think it could also lead possibly to some rather different ways of flying [such as wearing of seatbelts at all times].”
More tributes to Geoffrey Kitchen
Tributes have flooded in for Geoffrey Kitchen, who died after the Singapore Airlines flight he was on was hit severe turbulence.
The retired insurance worker had been a member of Thornbury Musical Theatre Group for 35 years, which was part of the Noda group.
In a statement, Noda said: “It is with great sadness that we learn of Geoff Kitche’s death in such tragic circumstances.
“He was a prominent and longstanding member of Thornbury Musical Theatre, having served in many offices on the committee as well as on stage. His love and passion for the theatre will be greatly missed by all who knew him.”
More passengers flying on to Singapore today
Singapore Airlines has said an additional five passengers on board the flight that was hit by severe turbulence will head to Singapore today.
The flight made an emergency landing in Bangkok after it plunged 600ft within minutes amid extreme weather.
More than 140 passengers and crew have already continued their journey to the flight’s destination of Singapore.
Another 74 passengers and six crew members are still in Bangkok, including those receiving medical care.
Mr Peter Seah, chairman of Singapore Airlines, said: “On behalf of the Singapore Airlines Board, I extend my deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of our passenger who passed away on 21 May 2024 in the SQ321 incident.
“I assure all passengers and crew members who were on board the aircraft that we are committed to supporting them during this difficult time.”
‘I saw people from across the aisle going completely horizontal’
More than 140 passengers and crew from a Singapore Airlines flight hit by heavy turbulence that left dozens injured and one dead finally reached Singapore on a relief flight Wednesday morning after an emergency landing in Bangkok
Among them was student Dzafran Azmir, a 28-year-old student who described the conditions on board.
“I saw people from across the aisle going completely horizontal, hitting the ceiling and landing back down in like really awkward positions. People, like, getting massive gashes in the head, concussions,” he said.
20 people in intensive care at hospital in Bangkok
Twenty people onboard a Singapore Airlines flight that hit severe turbulence on Tuesday are currently under treatment in intensive care facilities, Bangkok’s Samitivej Hospital said in a statement on Wednesday.
The hospital said a total of 58 people were still under treatment at multiple medical facilities, and 27 had been discharged.
The scheduled London-Singapore flight was diverted to Bangkok after the plane was buffeted by turbulence that flung passengers and crew around the cabin, slamming some into the ceiling. One passenger died of a suspected heart attack.
How the climate crisis is making turbulence worse
The death of a 73-year-old British man on a Singapore Airlines flight has again raised concerns about how climate change is increasing instances of flight turbulence.
Geoffrey Kitchen was among 211 passengers onboard the Boeing flight from London to Singapore when it plunged 6,000ft within minutes amid extreme weather.
Mr Kitchen was killed, while around 70 others were injured, after what passengers described a “dramatic drop” with some people’s heads slammed into the ceiling above their seats.
On Wednesday, as air safety officials started their investigation into what happened, attention has focused on the role of climate change with a growing number of studies indicating erratic air circulation patterns are being aggravated by the change in the earth’s temperatures.
Source: independent.co.uk
