Severe turbulence hits Air India Delhi to Sydney flight, injuring several passengers

Several passengers onboard Delhi to Sydney Air India flight AI302 were injured on Tuesday (May 16) due to severe turbulence mid-air. According to reports, the flight landed safely in Sydney on the morning of May 17 and some passengers received medical assistance. 

According to DGCA sources, seven passengers reported minor sprain. Air India cabin crew gave the passengers first aid with the help of a Doctor and a Nurse travelling onboard. When the flight landed in Sydney, medical assistance on arrival was arranged and three passengers availed of the assistance. 

So far, no passenger has been admitted to a hospital but more details are awaited. 

Turbulence on flights is a common occurrence, but rarely does it cause harm to passengers. However, there have been some unfortunate incidents related to flight turbulence. 

In September 2022, a 48-year-old man passed away after being hospitalised for months following in injuries caused by turbulence during a flight. Akbar Ansari passed away on September 29, 2022, due to "sepsis in shock” caused by polytrauma with spinal injury. Ansari along with another passenger were admitted to ICU after a SpiceJet flight from Mumbai to Durgapur suffered a severe turbulence while landing in May 2022. 

Recently, in March, a Lufthansa flight from Austin, US to Frankfurt, Germany made an emergency landing in Virginia after encountering severe turbulence and dropping thousands of feet in altitude seconds. 

There are also reports of turbulence on flights increasing due to climate change.