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In a terrifying ordeal guaranteed to shake even the most confident of travellers, severe turbulence struck an Air Europa flight from Spain to Uruguay on Monday July 1, resulting in injuries to more than two dozen passengers.

 

The frightening incident, which occurred around four hours into the journey from Madrid, led to an emergency landing in the Brazilian city of Natal. Health officials reported that several passengers sustained fractures and injuries to the neck and head, with many more suffering from shock.

 

Once flight UX045 eventually touched down, passengers recounted a chaotic and frightening scene as people were thrown around the cabin. Shocked witnesses described a man and even a baby becoming embedded in the plane's overhead bins during the turbulence.

 

“A person was left hanging between the plastic ceiling and the metal roof behind it, and they had to be brought down,” Evangelina Saravia, a passenger from Uruguay said.

 

“The same thing happened to a baby.”

 

Another passenger, Romina Apai, recounted how the man sitting next to her “flew and got stuck in the roof.”

 

Once the worst of the turbulence had passed and the aircraft was steady once more, she added, “people fell on top of seats, on top of other people.”

 

According to Brazilian public health officials, 36 passengers in all were injured and 23 had to be taken to hospital. Four travellers were so badly hurt that they were transferred to the intensive care for treatment.

 

While turbulence is typically not dangerous, severe episodes like this one can have devastating consequences. The incident just a month ago is still fresh in everyone’s mind, when a Singapore Airline’s flight dropped 6,000 feet after hitting turbulence. More than 70 people were injured and one 73-year-old man died.

 

Despite its relatively rare occurrence, with only 163 serious injuries registered in the US between 2009 and 2022, turbulence can cause significant harm when it occurs.

 

 

Image: @MarielaJodal / X