Fifty people injured by ‘strong movement’ on LATAM flight from Sydney to Auckland
A passenger onboard a LATAM airlines flight to Auckland in which ‘strong movement’ injured 50 passengers has described how the plane ‘dropped out of the sky’.
Bruised and bloodied passengers have told of their terror after a LATAM airlines flight from Sydney to Auckland “dropped out of the sky” when the pilots’ gauges blanked out and they lost control of the plane.
After leaving Sydney just before 11.30am on Monday, the Boeing 787-9 flew smoothly for the first two hours before mayhem ensued, and unrestrained passengers and crew were launched into the ceiling.
Video of the flight shows passengers rushing to the aid of one person who flew out of their chair and crashed into the ceiling of the plane.
Screams were heard throughout the ordeal and one passenger reportedly said that they could not tell whether red marks spattered all over the plane were red wine or blood.
Four Australians were among 13 passengers and crew taken to hospitals in Auckland after the pilots apparently experienced an avionics failure.
Other passengers injured were from New Zealand, Chile, Brazil and France along with three crew.
A statement from LATAM said those hurt were among 272 people on board the eight-year-old Boeing 787-9.
The flight was about an hour from Auckland when it “experienced a strong shake, the cause of which is currently under investigation”.
Fourteen emergency vehicles met the flight on arrival with ambulance personnel assessing and treating about 50 people.
A statement from LATAM said of those taken to hospital, “the majority were discharged shortly after”.
“Only one passenger and one cabin crew member required additional attention, but without any life-threatening risks,” said the statement.
“LATAM is working in coordination with the respective authorities to support the investigations into the incident.”
The 787-9 was expected to remain out of action for sometime, with LATAM organising another aircraft to carry passengers on the second leg of their flight to Santiago, Chile.
That flight was due to leave Auckland at 8pm local time on Tuesday.
LATAM airlines is the largest carrier in Latin America after being formed in 2012 from the merger of Chilean airline LAN with Brazilian carrier TAM.
LATAM customer Brian Jokat told The Australian about three-quarters of the way through the flight, the plane “suddenly dropped”.
He said there had not been any turbulence notification nor announcements, and many passengers were not wearing seat belts when the plane dropped.
“People were sent right into the roof out of their seats. Guys were cut and bruised and battered then laying on the floor afterwards,” Mr Jokat said.
The passenger beside him came out of his seat, hitting his ribs on the arm rest while others needed to be put in neck braces.
While the sudden drop in altitude was short-lived, Mr Jokat said passengers were screaming in panic. “It didn’t really click in until we got to the ground … a couple of more seconds (out of control) … we would’ve been straight down to the ocean, and that is the stark reality of how close it came today.”
After the plane landed, the pilot made his way to the back of the plane. Mr Jokat asked what had happened. “He said, ‘I don’t know, my instrument panel just went on me for a split second and caused the plane to lose control’,” Mr Jokat said. “Then he said it came back on again.”
Another passenger, Renata Meins, said it was “a horror movie” and she was “in shock”.
“Praise be to God who saved me from death … the plane began to free-fall. I ended up on the ceiling but came out without a scratch,” she said in an Instagram post.
Priscilla Waller-Subritzky told the NZ Herald she was watching a movie when the plane lost altitude and “a number of passengers and crew were thrown into the roof of the plane”.
“I went into fight mode and just started jumping in and helping where I could because the crew were injured so couldn’t help.”
Ms Waller-Subritzky said she went to the emergency department after experiencing some pain. “I’ve been on plenty of flights before but that was completely out the gate,” she said.
LATAM Airlines said a “technical issue” was to blame for the “strong movement” experienced by the flight. “LATAM regrets the inconvenience and injury this situation may have caused passengers, and reiterates its commitment to safety as a priority within the framework of its operational standards,” said a statement.
A Hato Hone St John Ambulance spokesman said they were alerted to the incident on the incoming flight about 30 minutes before it landed, and sent 14 units to the airport in response.
“These included seven ambulances, two rapid response vehicles, a command unit and two major incident support team vehicles,” he said. .
“Twelve patients were transported to hospital, 10 of whom were taken to Middlemore Hospital, including one patient in a serious condition.
“One patient was transported to Auckland City Hospital in a moderate condition, and one was taken to Starship Hospital in a moderate condition.”
The next leg of the flight to Santiago was cancelled as a consequence, with a new service scheduled for Tuesday evening.
“LATAM is providing affected passengers with food and accommodation,” a spokeswoman said.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau was aware of the incident but any investigation was likely to be undertaken by New Zealand’s Traffic Accident Investigation Commission.
In another airline incident on Monday, a mechanical fault has been blamed for a turnback by a United Airlines’ Boeing 777-300 en route from Sydney to San Francisco. The midday flight had flown for about 650km when the pilots reported a hydraulic fault to air traffic control. Within about 2½ hours of takeoff, the flight was back in Sydney, being met by aviation fire and rescue teams.
It’s understood the 777-300 would be grounded until engineers were satisfied the aircraft was safe to return to the skies.
The ATSB was gathering further information but it was too early to say an investigation would be conducted.
The LATAM incident highlighted again the importance of wearing seatbelts throughout a flight. In January, passengers on an Alaska Airlines flight that experienced a door plug blowout during ascent escaped serious injury because all were wearing seatbelts at the time. In contrast a dozen passengers on an Emirates flight from Perth to Dubai were injured in December when the A380 struck unexpected turbulence mid-flight.
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