Extreme Turbulence Hospitalizes 11 Passengers On Transatlantic Flight

A flight carrying British cruise-goers from Barbados to Manchester was forced to divert to Bermuda after an incident of extreme turbulence two days before Christmas. There were 225 passengers onboard the Airbus A330-200 operated by Maleth Aero, a Maltese charter airline. When the aircraft landed, 11 people were transported to a local hospital to treat minor injuries, according to the BBC. Everyone ended up spending the holiday stranded in Bermuda, as it took days to arrange a replacement flight.

Maleth Aero Flight 1975 hit severe clear-air turbulence two hours into the nearly nine-hour flight. The incident lasted less than a minute but created chaos in the passenger cabin. A woman onboard told the Manchester Evening News, “We were about two hours into the flight and everything was fine — some people were sitting down, but some were in the toilets and staff were serving drinks. Then all of a sudden the plane literally just dropped.” An image that circulated on social media showed a galley cart overturned in the aisle. Thankfully, none of the 13 crew members were injured.

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