Singapore Airlines turbulence: Passengers on fatal flight offered compensation

A 73-year-old British man died from a suspected heart attack when a flight from London to Singapore hit severe turbulence and dropped more than 50m in four seconds last month.

Singapore Airlines is offering injured passengers compensation after a flight from London to Singapore was hit by severe turbulence last month.

One man died and dozens suffered injuries on the Boeing 777 Singapore Airlines flight on 21 May after the plane hit turbulence so bad it dropped 54m in just four seconds.

People described “launching into the ceiling” as more than 100 passengers and staff were left needing hospital treatment, with some undergoing serious “spinal operations”.

In a post on social media on Tuesday, the airline outlined the compensation offers it was making to passengers on board the flight.

They repeated an apology for the “traumatic experience” and said passengers who sustained minor injuries had been offered $10,000 (£7,800).

Those who sustained “serious injuries, requiring long-term medical care” had been offered an “advance payment” of $25,000 (£19,600).

These figures, the company said, were a part of “the final compensation that these passengers will receive”.

They added: “For those who sustained more serious injuries from the incident, we have invited them to discuss a compensation offer to meet each of their specific circumstances when they feel well and ready to do so.”

In the immediate aftermath of the incident, the airline provided each passenger with around £500 and they have been covering medical expenses, as well as arranging for family members and loved ones to fly to Bangkok – where it made an emergency landing.

The plane hit turbulence over the Andaman Sea, carrying 211 passengers at the time.

Geoff Kitchen, 73, from Gloucestershire in the UK, died from a suspected heart attack after the freak incident despite flight crew trying to revive him for 20 minutes.

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The Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital said it had provided medical care to a total of 104 people after the flight was diverted to Thailand.

Six Britons were among those left in intensive care.

One of the passengers, Josh Silverstone, told Sky News what happened on board the flight.

He said that there was an alert for the seatbelts to come on and then there was a “huge bang”.

“I remember waking up on the floor and just hearing people crying and I am looking around and seeing blood and the ceiling falling through,” he said.

Mr Silverstone said there was an elderly lady in front of him who couldn’t move and couldn’t remember her name or why she was on the flight, while cabin crew members, who had their own injuries, were lying on the floor with passengers making sure they were okay.

It remains unclear what exactly caused the turbulence, but data from Flightradar24, said “the flight encountered a rapid change in vertical rate, consistent with a sudden turbulence event”.