A Singapore Airlines flight that made an emergency landing in Bangkok on Tuesday had fallen into an air pocket in Thai airspace before it encountered turbulence, with one man killed and seven people critically injured on board, a senior airport official said.
VIDEO: Passengers carried out of flight SQ321 after making emergency landing in Bangkok
Suvarnabhumi Airport general manager Kittipong Kittikachorn told a press conference a 73-year-old British man died during the incident, likely due to a heart attack, while head injuries were sustained among seven people critically injured. One crew member was hospitalised, he said.
The Boeing 777 flight from London’s Heathrow Airport to Singapore, with 211 passengers and 18 crew members aboard, landed at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, the airline said in a Facebook post. Emergency medical crews rushed to help the passengers. Videos posted on the LINE messaging platform by Suvarnabhumi Airport showed a line of ambulances streaming to the scene.
Singapore Airlines said on Facebook that as of four hours after the emergency landing, 18 people remained hospitalized while another 12 were treated on an outpatient basis. “The remaining passengers and crew are being examined and given treatment, where necessary,” it said.
Singapore would dispatch another plane
Thailand’s Transport Minister Suriya Jungrungruangkit said Singapore would dispatch another plane later Tuesday night to transport the lightly injured and non-injured passengers to the city-state’s Changi airport. He said that the plane was expected to arrive in Bangkok at 9:45 p.m. Kittipong Kittikachorn, general manager of Suvarnabhumi Airport, told a news conference on Tuesday night that the British man appeared to have suffered a heart attack.
Tracking data captured by FlightRadar24 and analyzed by The Associated Press show the Singapore Airlines flight SQ321 cruising at an altitude of 37,000 feet (11,300 meters).
At one point, the Boeing 777-300ER suddenly and sharply plummets to 31,000 feet (9,400 meters) over the span of some three minutes, the data shows. The aircraft then stayed at 31,000 feet (9,400 meters) for under 10 minutes before diverting and landing in Bangkok less than half an hour later.
Sharp descent
The sharp descent in turbulence happened as the flight was over the Andaman Sea, near Myanmar. The aircraft sent a “squawk code” of 7700 at that time, an international emergency signal.
“Singapore Airlines offers its deepest condolences to the family of the deceased,” the airline said. “We are working with the local authorities in Thailand to provide the necessary medical assistance, and sending a team to Bangkok to provide any additional assistance needed.”
Singapore Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat also extended condolences on his Facebook page. He said his ministry and Singapore’s Foreign Ministry, as well as the country’s Civil Aviation Authority and Changi Airport officials, along with airline staff, “are providing support to the affected passengers and their families.”
(With inputs from agencies)
