Several people were seriously injured after terrifying turbulence hit a crowded British Airways flight at 30,000ft.
Five crew members were injured and passengers screamed as the Boeing 777-300ER bound for London Heathrow was rammed through stormy skies four hours after taking off from Singapore.
One of the in-flight staff required surgery and one suffered a concussion and a dislocated ankle, while another had to undergo an MRI on a badly bruised hip.
Three passengers were also seriously injured as people, including dozens of Britons, were thrown into the cabin in the early hours of Friday.
The turbulence that hit the plane as it flew over the Bay of Bengal was so severe and sustained that the pilot was eventually forced to abort flight BA12.
A source told The Sun that the pilot “had no choice but to try to turn the plane back”.
They said the airline had ‘not experienced anything like it in the past five years’.
The source said: “This is an area where the winds often make flying uncomfortable, but the severity of this turbulence was obscene.”
“Out of nowhere, the plane was shaking as it suddenly dropped five feet and rose again in uncomfortable jerky movements.
“There were screams from the passengers and a great upheaval spread through the cabins.
“The ‘fasten seat belt’ signs were on, but the heroic crew were performing essential tasks when they were thrown into the cabin.”
After enduring the petrifying turbulence, the plane landed in Singapore around 3am.
The shocked passengers were offered hotel accommodation and re-booked for later flights.
A British Airways spokesman told The Sun: ‘Safety is always our priority and we are taking care of our crew after one of our flights experienced a rare episode of severe turbulence.
“Our highly trained team on board reassured customers and the aircraft returned to Singapore as a precaution.
“We apologized to customers for their flight delays and provided them with hotel accommodation and information about their consumer rights.
“We are re-booking customers on the next available flights with us and other airlines.”
Last April, passengers on a flight from Angola to Portugal were showered with food and wine after turbulence caused carnage in the cabin.
Food, napkins, cutlery and the passengers’ personal effects were strewn in the aisle after being shaken.
Planes are experiencing more turbulence than in previous decades, according to new research.
Researchers from the University of Reading said this is expected to increase with climate change, but their study provides strong evidence that it is already happening.
Warmer air from CO2 emissions increases wind shear in jet streams – when the wind suddenly changes speed or direction in a small area.
Scientists said clear-air turbulence already costs airlines hundreds of millions a year, but further investment is needed to predict and detect the invisible phenomenon.
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