12 Qatar Airways passengers injured as Boeing jet hits turbulence en route to Dublin
Passengers say episode on Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner traveling from Doha to Ireland was ‘scary’
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Twelve people have been left injured after a Qatar Airways flight from Doha to Dublin, Ireland hit an area of turbulence, with one passenger describing it as the "worst 15 seconds of my life."
Dublin Airport said in a statement that Qatar Airways flight QR017 – a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner – managed to land safely around midday Sunday.
"Upon landing, the aircraft was met by emergency services, including Airport Police and our Fire and Rescue department, due to 6 passengers and 6 crew [12 total] on board reporting injuries after the aircraft experienced turbulence while airborne over Turkey," the airport said. "All passengers were assessed for injury prior to disembarking the aircraft. Eight passengers were subsequently taken to hospital."
Qatar Airways said in its own statement that a "small number of passengers and crew sustained minor injuries in flight and are now receiving medical attention" and that "the matter is now subject to an internal investigation."
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A Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner from Qatar Airways is landing at Barcelona Airport in Spain in February 2023. A similar aircraft landed safely in Dublin, Ireland on Sunday after hitting turbulence that left 12 injured. (Urbanandsport/NurPhoto via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Passengers onboard the aircraft described a sudden drop during the flight, causing travelers to hit the ceiling of the cabin.
"It was very scary, to be honest, I’m still shivering... that was the worst 15 seconds of my life," one flier, Mufaddal Ali, told The Associated Press.
One passenger told Irish broadcaster RTE that the seatbelt lights were off when the plane hit turbulence. He added that his in-flight meal came off of his lap and that his shorts were ripped during the incident.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BA | THE BOEING CO. | 156.54 | +1.10 | +0.71% |
Another traveler told RTE that a person on the plane appeared to have suffered a back injury and was being given oxygen while lying down, while a third said they felt the plane dip and saw a flight attendant "go up in the air."
"It was quite scary, the plane just seemed to stop, which it didn’t, but then dropped, quite a severe drop. Fortunately, the captain got it under control quite quickly because I was thinking ‘oh it’s going to keep falling," Cheryl Suker told the AP. "But unfortunately, there were a couple of passengers that didn’t have seatbelts on. They were in front of us, they were thrown out of their seats and hit their head."
PASSENGERS ON SINGAPORE AIRLINES FLIGHT DESCRIBE NIGHTMARE AFTER PLANE HIT ‘SEVERE TURBULENCE’
The nose cone of a Boeing Co. 787 Dreamliner aircraft operated by Qatar Airways, left, stands near the tail fin of a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft, produced by Boeing Co., at the Farnborough International Airshow in Farnborough, United Kingdom, in (Simon Dawson/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Despite the incident, the flight crew kept tending to the passengers onboard.
"The staff were amazing, like to actually get up and have to look after us and they are going around with bandages on their hands and bloodied faces," passenger Philomena Prendergrast told the AP.
An aerial view of Dublin airport is seen from the window of a Ryanair flight in September 2017. (Reuters/Clodagh Kilcoyne / Reuters Photos)
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It happened just days after a Singapore Airlines jet encountered "severe turbulence" that left 1 dead. That plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Bangkok, Thailand, last week.