Twenty travelers receive critical attention following a bumpy aircraft journey.
A Singapore Airlines flight was temporarily grounded due to an air pocket, resulting in a 73-year-old British man's death and injuries to numerous passengers. Aftermaking an emergency landing in Bangkok, over 20 people are being treated in intensive care units, with some needing intensive treatment. This incident is expected to spark a rise in similar occurrences in the future.
Hospital authorities in Bangkok reported that nine individuals had undergone surgery and five were still waiting to be operated on. A total of twenty people were receiving treatment in intensive care units at two separate facilities, while 58 people remained hospitalized and 27 had already been released.
The day before, a Boeing 777-300R operated by Singapore Airlines with 229 individuals on board experienced an air pocket while flying from London to Singapore. Around ten hours into the journey, the plane encountered turbulence as flight attendants were serving breakfast. The plane is said to have dropped suddenly over 6000 feet (almost 2000 meters). The 73-year-old British passenger passed away from a suspected heart attack caused by the rough conditions. His wife and many others were injured, some severely. The majority of these passengers were not wearing their seatbelts at the time of the sudden turbulence. One witness reported that the plane suddenly plummeted and those not buckled up were flung to the ceiling. Upon landing at Changi Airport in Singapore, a distraught immigrant reception told the Straits Times that there were emotional farewells when the special plane arrived early Tuesday morning (local time).
Turbulence connected to climate change
Researchers at the University of Reading in England recently found a connection between the increasing frequency of invisible clear-air turbulence and climate change. Between 1979 and 2020, there was a 55% increase in the prevalence of this phenomenon in a typical North Atlantic location. Such turbulence has also become more common on other flight routes than it was a few years ago.
Pilots are provided with estimated areas of potential turbulence in their flight plans. But predicting clear-air turbulence precisely is impossible. Pilots can easily recognize such turbulence when flying through thunderstorms, according to an experienced pilot from the Cockpit Association. Swift, accurate warnings can only be issued if pilots ahead of the affected aircraft relay the information to air traffic control. They do, of course, share the information, said a representative from the Deutscher Fluglotsenverband (DFV), the German air traffic control organization. However, the air masses are always shifting.
The expert from Vereinigung Cockpit (VC), the German Pilots' Association, asserted that aircraft were structurally built to withstand the resulting forces. These occur when air masses move in varying directions. In the event of strong downward flows, the aircraft's altitude can only be held for a short time. "However, the aircraft doesn't fall, but descends."
Should pilots detect strong turbulence, they attempt to steer clear of the affected area, but this isn't always possible given the thick and high clouds found in the tropics. "Passengers should never unfasten their seat belts in the event of unexpected turbulence," the VC pilot strongly advises as the most crucial safety measure. "It's like driving a car through a pothole at 900 km/h." The flight attendants are instructed to quickly sit down during severe turbulence to prevent being thrown about the plane.
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- Given the link between climate change and an increase in turbulence, airlines may need to adjust their flight plans and safety protocols to account for more frequent air pocket incidents, similar to the one experienced by a Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300R flight from London to Singapore.
- This highlights the need for ongoing research and collaboration between airlines, pilot associations, and meteorologists to better understand and predict air pockets and clear-air turbulence, which can have serious consequences for air travel, as evident in the Airbus A380 incident where 229 passengers, including the 73-year-old British man, encountered turbulence during their flight.
- International airline regulators should prioritize the development of advanced warning systems and technologies to provide pilots with real-time information about potential turbulence zones, helping prevent misfortunes such as the tragic Singapore Airlines flight that resulted in a disaster in Bangkok.
- Airline safety protocols should include mandatory seatbelt usage during all phases of flight to minimize injuries and fatalities during turbulence incidents, following the lead of Singapore Airlines in addressing the aftermath of its passenger's unexpected turbulence experience and encouraging passengers to always buckle up for their own safety.
Source: www.ntv.de
