Report reveals Qantas safety lapses after turbulence injures crew

A Qantas crew member’s leg and ankle were broken, and another continued to work for days with concussion symptoms, after they were injured during severe turbulence on descent to Brisbane last year.

All up, three flight attendants were injured – one seriously – as the Boeing 737-800 hit turbulence as it passed through 11,400 feet, about 36 kilometres south-east of Brisbane.

An Australian Transport Safety Bureau report on the incident, involving a plane carrying 143 passengers on May 4 last year, was released on Tuesday.

The Qantas Boeing 737 – VH-VYK – involved in the incident.Credit: Bloomberg

The crew member who suffered broken bones as flight QF520 from Sydney came in to land was unable to move from the rear galley floor.

Two cabin crew, including the customer service manager, and two passengers – an off-duty cabin crew employee and a travelling doctor – remained with the injured crew member, unrestrained, during the landing.

The stricken flight attendant had been in the process of taking their seat when the plane struck turbulence. They rose in the air, struck their head on the ceiling, and landed heavily on their feet, resulting in the breaks.

The attendant was later diagnosed with two breaks in their ankle and another in their leg, which required surgery.

According to the report, the captain did not recall receiving any requests for more time to prepare the cabin for landing, and twice directed all uninjured cabin crew and passengers to return to their seats.

“Landing is a critical phase of flight, and the unrestrained cabin crew and passengers were exposed to a higher risk of injury in a landing-based emergency, which in turn would have compromised the cabin crew’s ability to manage any such emergency situation,” said ATSB’s director of transport safety, Stuart Godley.

“Data shows almost 80 per cent of serious turbulence-related injuries in airline operations are sustained by cabin crew, and the most common time for these to occur is when preparing the cabin for landing.”

While a waiting ambulance crew treated the flight attendant with the broken bones at the gates, the other two injured crew members did not receive any medical assessment or treatment.

One, who was unaware they had sustained a concussion, operated on multiple flights while experiencing symptoms, before being treated, the report notes.

“Qantas did not have a procedure to assess cabin crew fitness after a serious injury,” the report says.

“This increased the risk that a crew member could continue to operate while being unfit for duty.”

A Qantas spokeswoman said the airline had changed its procedures since the incident.

“Following an internal investigation, we promptly expanded our group-wide medical escalation and post-incident medical assessment processes, ensuring all crew onboard a flight are assessed following an incident, regardless of visible impact,” she said.

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.