Food and drink splatters all over cabin after flight unexpectedly jolts in mid-air
Nearly 40 people were injured when a United Airlines flight jolted while flying from Nigeria to the USA.
Passengers were feasting on their in-flight meals and settling down to watch a film when the Boeing 787-8 made an ‘unexpected movement’ in the early hours of Friday.
Drinks that didn’t drench people in their seats were splattered across the overhead compartments. Food trays, forks, wrappers and headphones were piled up in the aisle.
Four passengers and two flight attendants required hospital treatment for serious injuries sustained aboard Flight UA613 from Lagos to Washington DC.
Another 27 passengers and five crew members sustained minor injuries.
Thehad taken off at 11.50pm on Thursday with 245 passengers and 11 crew members on board.
Around 90 minutes in, the plane suddenly dropped nearly 200ft before, according to flight-tracking website Flightradar24.
It then returned to Lagos, where it landed at 3.22am without ‘any major damage’ and was met on the runway by an emergency medical team.
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria said: ‘Those with minor injuries received first aid and were discharged immediately, while those with serious injuries were stabilised and transferred to the Duchess Hospital in Ikeja’
United Airlines blamed ‘a technical issue and an unexpected aircraft movement’.
In a statement, the airline said: ‘It landed safely in Lagos and four passengers and two flight attendants were seen at a hospital for minor injuries and have been released.
‘We are working with aviation authorities in the U.S. and Nigeria to understand the cause. ’
The same aircraft had been diverted to Accra on Tuesday, again while flying from Lagos to Washington DC.
United Airlines told Metro this was due to a ‘medical emergency onboard’. It completed its journey to Washington on Wednesday.
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