More than 30 people have been injured, and 20 taken for emergency treatment, after a Hawaiian Airlines flight hit “severe turbulence”.
The event, described as “very rare” by officials, came about half an hour before the Hawaiian Airlines Flight 35 landed in Honolulu from Phoenix, Arizona, on Sunday (local time).
“Sometimes, these air pockets occur with no warning. It’s rare to have that level of extreme turbulence. It was a very extreme case of mid-air turbulence,” Hawaiian Air executive vice president and chief operating officer Jon Snook said at a news conference.
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Honolulu Emergency Medical Services said 11 patients were in serious conditions. A 14-month-old child was among those taken to hospital.
Injuries included a serious head injury, lacerations, bruising and loss of consciousness, Honolulu EMS said. Mr Snook said other passenger were treated for nausea and “very, very minor injuries”.
“It could have been worse, certainly, and we’re all very grateful for that,” he said.
The EMS said it and the American Medical Response had responded to a “mass casualty emergency” at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport just after 11am Sunday (local time).
Passenger Kaylee Reyes told Hawaii News Now that her mother had just sat down when the turbulence hit, and did not have a chance to buckle her safety belt.
“She flew up and hit the ceiling,” Ms Reyes said.
Another passenger, Jazmin Bitanga, said there were two “intense” altitude drops.
“I turned around and there was a couple of people bleeding and just bracing themselves,” she said.
“Just all around me there were people crying.”
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Photos and videos circulating online show some of the plane’s upper luggage compartments crushed. Other footage shows passengers being attended to on the ground, including some in neck braces being ferried away on stretchers.
Earlier, Hawaiian Airlines confirmed the incident in a statement. It said it was “supporting all affected passengers & employees” and monitoring the situation, the company said.
“Medical care was provided to several guests and crew members at the airport for minor injuries while some were swiftly transported to local hospitals for further care,” the airline tweeted.
It said the plane, an Airbus 330, was carrying 278 passengers and 10 crew, and had landed safely in Honolulu.
The Associated Press said on Sunday that meteorologists had reported thunderstorms in the area that might have affected the plane’s flight path.
The US Federal Aviation Administration said it was investigating the incident.
-with agencies
