Most passengers from a Singapore Airlines flight that encountered severe turbulence on Tuesday, May 21, have finally reached their destination. The flight, traveling from London to Singapore, resulted in the death of a 73-year-old British passenger from a suspected heart attack. Dozens more were injured.
The airline said 143 passengers arrived in the city state shortly after 5 a.m. local time.
The Boeing 777, carrying 211 passengers and 18 crew members, was forced to make an emergency landing in Bangkok after a sudden descent of 6,000 feet, likely caused by clear air turbulence.
The airline’s CEO, Goh Choon Phong, stated that 79 passengers and six crew members — including 71 who were hospitalized — stayed behind in Bangkok as of Wednesday, May 22.
“We are very sorry for the traumatic experience that everyone on board SQ321 went through,” Goh said in a social media video. He added that the airline is providing all necessary support and will fully cooperate with investigations.
“I saw people from across the aisle just going completely horizontal, hitting the ceiling and landing back down in really awkward positions,” Dzafran Azmir, a passenger on Flight SQ321, said. “People, like, getting massive gashes in the head, concussions.”
The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board along with Singapore’s Transport Safety Investigation Bureau are investigating the turbulence.