Passengers on Singapore Airlines turbulence flight share their traumatic experiences

An Aussie couple, one of who has no feeling from the waist down after the Singapore Airlines turbulence flight, say the mental scars could be as painful as the physical.

As his wife recovers from serious spinal surgery, Adelaide’s Keith Davis can’t help but wonder what impact their brush with death on Singapore Airlines flight SQ321 could have on the mental health of passengers.

Between the physical pain of their injuries, the terror as the plane plunged and their proximity to the prolonged unsuccessful attempts to revive an elderly passenger, those on board the flight have been through the wringer.

Mr Davis remains in a Bangkok hospital where he is recovering from a head injury while simultaneously supporting his wife Kerry Jordan who is among the most seriously injured Australians.

Ms Jordan remains in intensive care where she has no feeling from the waist down after she slammed into a luggage rack.

She’s not the only one with Malaysian woman Eva Khoo telling media she had six relatives injured on the flight including her pregnant sister-in-law who also required spinal surgery.

A Marino couple is among 48 passengers and crew still in hospital in Bangkok after a turbulent Singapore Airlines flight sent them into freefall. Keith Davis is waiting for his severely injured wife Kerry Jordan to be stable enough to be medevaced home. https://t.co/BcpohAeNvR pic.twitter.com/Nl3jxFf9t2

— 7NEWS Adelaide (@7NewsAdelaide) May 24, 2024

Doctors are hopeful following Ms Jordan’s spinal surgery, but she faces a long road to recovery.

“I’m focused on getting her fit, healthy and stable to fly and into the Royal Adelaide Hospital spinal rehabilitation unit,” Mr Davis said.

“But that (counselling) will be something to pursue down the track.”

Mr Davis has been joined his adult daughter Adele in Bangkok who been an invaluable support to him.

“It’s really important to us to have the psychological support networks. We have had an outpouring of support from friends and family,” Mr Davis said.

“They have psychologists here on staff … so there’s support here now.

“But I think it’s going to be later on for me.

“I’m just keeping on, keeping going until we get a result with Kerry. But I’m realistic about it. I know I’ll need some counselling.”

A HUSBAND’S LOVE

When Mr Davis realised his badly injured wife was not getting up from the aisle of their turbulence plagued flight there only one choice to make – save her.

The 59-year-old Adelaide landscape architect and his wife Ms Jordan had been on a holiday in the UK and were making the long trek back home which led them to take Singapore Airlines flight SQ321.

When the turbulence hit, Mr Davis’ head smashed through the ceiling but he landed back in his chair, suffering a bloody head injury.

Ms Jordan ricocheted off the luggage rack causing serious spinal damage.

“My first thought was to stop water spilling on her dress actually,” Mr Davis said.

“I could see the water shape growing. Then that moment passed and it was all chaos.”

Adelaide residents Keith Davis and Kerry Jordan were on holiday in the UK and returning home on Singapore Airlines flight SQ321

It was immediately clear to Mr Davis that he needed to act to protect his wife from further injury as panicked passengers stumbled around the plane.

“Kerry was in the aisle not moving. I had to make sure no one moved her,” Mr Davis said.

“So I sat in her chair and straddled her with my legs to make sure no one would collect her because there was a lot of traffic, as you could imagine.

“I had to make sure if people were coming down the aisle they went around her carefully.”

Ms Jordan is one of three Australians in intensive care at Samitivej Srinakarin hospital in Bangkok. Her husband said she has “no feeling from her waist down”.

She is conscious and stable but has a long road ahead as she heals from spinal surgery.

“We’re taking it day by day. Our aim is to get her stable so she can actually fly. That’s the key thing,” Mr Davis said.

“The medical team here has been absolutely exemplary and amazing … the staff have been world class.”

Rather than focus on his own recovery, Mr Davis spent the days after the incident desperately trying to get answers from Singapore Airlines.

“The reality is the airline, Singapore Airlines, is our only option for the medevac because commercial carriers that would do that from here are pretty rare.” Mr Davis said.

Keith Davis right after the crash.

Mr Davis continues to recover is hospital in Bangkok.

“Essentially they’d need to take out a row on first class for all of her supplies and medical equipment.

“I’ve made it clear that is my expectation.”

For three days he heard nothing and Mr Davis’ concerns escalated.

However, that all changed on Thursday when he received a personal visit from Singapore Airlines CEO Goh Choon Phong.

Mr Davis said Singapore Airlines have now sprung into action and their adult daughter Adele and her partner Trent were on the way from Adelaide to Bangkok courtesy of the airline.

He said the airline had also committed to medevacing Ms Jordan back to Adelaide when she is hopefully cleared to travel in about a week’s time.

“He said to me a very heartfelt apology and I said I appreciate that,” Mr Davis said.

“He didn’t try to make any excuses for the airline not talking to us for three days.”

Mr Davis has already connected with the spinal unit at Royal Adelaide Hospital to organise Ms Jordan’s rehab.

He said the medical specialists in Bangkok had done a “fantastic job” but they are eager to get home as soon as it is safe to do so.

Sydneysiders Ali and Ramiza Bukhari were on honeymoon in Iceland and returning to Australia.

HONEYMOON HORROR

Sydneysiders Ali and Ramiza Bukhari saved for years for their dream honeymoon to Iceland only for it turn into a nightmare on board flight SQ321.

“My wife and I thought we were going to die,” Mr Bukhari told the Wall Street Journal.

“We didn’t think we were going to make it.”

The 27-year-old and his wife have since made back home to Sydney as they managed to escape injury.

However despite being back among friends and family, the bad dream hasn’t gone away.

“I’ve never had any sort of fear of flying. But I can honestly say that I’m now afraid to fly,” Mr Bukhari said.

Singapore Airlines passenger Beverley Mayers arrived safely in Sydney. Picture: ABC News

EERIE CLUE BEFORE TURBULENCE HIT

An Australian woman caught in the Singapore Airlines emergency has spoken of the one thing she noticed right before all hell broke loose.

Port Macquarie’s Beverley Mayers, 81, said she was puzzled when something odd started going on with the overhead lockers during the breakfast service.

“We hadn’t touched it, so that was strange.

“And then suddenly everything went ‘bang’ and everything just fell.

“I think we all thought the plane was going to fall apart,” she told ABC News.

Ms Mayers said she is relieved to be home after a “very emotional” day and that she felt “pure shock and fear’’ when flight SQ321 hit sudden and severe turbulence on its way from London to Singapore.

She spoke to media after arriving safely at Sydney Airport and said she was on her way home after visiting her daughter in the UK.

John and Jenny Hall are an Adelaide couple caught up in a terrifying mid-air plunge. Picture: 7NEWS

‘LIKE A CAR CRASH’

A South Australian couple who were on their way home to Adelaide have described their experience on the nailbiting flight.

John and Jenny Hall of Hallett Cove were returning from a European holiday which almost ended in disaster.

They told 7NEWS the turbulence felt “like a car crash”.

The pair added they felt their seatbelts saved them from the serious injuries experienced by others.

“She has full mobility of her extremities but is in a lot of pain. I have a broken neck, able to move about however I have pain as well. We both await MRIs to learn more.

“We are in good spirits and are at an amazing hospital in Bangkok. Clearly things could have been worse and we feel blessed.”

HOW PASSENGER LEARNED OF TRAGIC NEWS

Linda Kitchen was lying in an intensive care bed when she learned her husband had died on the plane which should have seen them on their way to a bucket list trip to visit Australia.

Relatives of the Kitchen family said Mrs Kitchen was informed her husband Geoff, 73, was dead as she continued to fight her own terrible injuries.

Linda Kitchen and her late husband Geoff were both on the Singapore Airlines turbulence flight.

“She has spinal and shoulder injuries – I think she was unconscious when they got her off the plane,” the relative said.

“The tragic news was broken to her (Wednesday) morning. They were such a devoted couple, you can’t imagine what it must be like for her.”

Mrs Kitchen has since had the opportunity to speak with her adult son Stuart on the phone. “She was woozy with painkillers and she’s going for a second scan,” the relative told the UK’s Daily Mail.

Mr Kitchen, a British musical theatre director, was embarking on a six-week holiday with his wife to Australia and the Pacific.

It is believed Mr Kitchen suffered cardiac arrest during the incident.

‘THROWN TO THE ROOF’

Melbourne woman Teandra Tuhkunen, who had her left arm in a sling, spoke to Sky News UK from Bangkok’s Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital.

She said she was asleep and “was woken up because I was thrown to the roof and then to the floor”.

The 30-year-old said she didn’t have time to put her seatbelt on after the sign came on.

Australian Teandra Tuhkunen, from Melbourne, had her left arm in a sling in Bangkok's Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital. Picture: Sky News

“Pretty much immediately, straight after that I was flung to the roof, before I had time to put my seatbelt on unfortunately,” she said.

“It was just so quick, over in a couple of seconds and then you’re just shocked. Everyone’s pretty freaked out.”

Asked if it was scary, she said: “Life happens. Things happen. The pilots saved our lives, that’s all that matters in the end.”

Passengers were flung to the ceiling when the plane suddenly experienced a 6000 ft drop.

ADELAIDE BUSINESSMAN RECALLS AIRPORT CHAOS

A businessman who witnessed the emergency landing of a Singapore Airlines flight in Bangkok on Tuesday has told how he texted his wife to assure her he wasn’t on board.

Jai Rastogi landed at Adelaide Airport for business early Wednesday morning.

“We were in the lounge and when we came out there was just a lot of commotion on the runway where the plane had stopped and a lot of ambulance, police,” Mr Rastogi, who lives in Bangkok, said.

“There was a lot of movement straight out of the airport, then they disembarked the ones that were all right.

“I travel a lot so it was a wake up call.

“I texted my wife to let her know I wasn’t on the flight because I flew back from Paris the day before and I reminded my daughter to wear the seatbelt because the passengers that were injured weren’t wearing a seatbelt.

“It makes you realise anything can happen.”

PASSENGER ON WAY TO AUSTRALIA REVEALS FLIGHT HORROR

Jerry, a 68-year-old British grandfather who spoke to the BBC, told how the ordeal came entirely out of the blue.

Speaking with a heavily bandaged head, Jerry revealed he was on his way to a wedding in Australia but “couldn’t stomach” the thought of another five flights there and back and so would be abandoning his plans.

British passenger Jerry, speaks to the media about his experience as severe turbulence hit a London to Singapore flight that killed one man and injured dozens more. Picture: BBC

“Suddenly the plane plunged, I don’t know how far but it was a long way and so sudden. There was no warning at all,” Jerry said.

“I ended up hitting my head on the ceiling (and) my wife did. Some poor people walking around ended up doing somersaults, it was absolutely terrible.

“Suddenly it stopped, and it was calm again. The staff did their best to tend to the injured people, there were a lot of them.

“Some of the staff were injured themselves, so they did a sterling job.”

Once Jerry arrived in Bangkok, a swarm of medical teams greeted the aircraft and took the patients with the worst injuries off first.

He said he went to the hospital as his grandson needed to have an assessment and once he arrived, he also found his daughter and her husband there. Jerry said he struggled to find his wife at first, but the pair were eventually reunited.

British passenger Jerry. Picture: BBC

Jerry said he and his family would be flying straight home from Bangkok, as soon as his daughter and wife were discharged from hospital which means they will miss his son’s wedding on Friday.

“My daughter will be in [hospital] for a few days. My wife I’m not so sure. But it could have been a lot worse,” he said.

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