‘We thought we would die’: Passengers thrown into ceiling during terrifying flight

An Air India flight hit severe turbulence earlier this week, injuring 17 people as passengers were tossed into the ceiling and aisles following a sudden loss of altitude.The airline issued a statement about the incident. (iStock)

The aircraft briefly lost about 300 feet in altitude during the turbulence,The Times of Indiareported.

“It’s very unusual but not rare to have serious turbulence incidents,” Gary Leff, a Texas-based travel industry expert and author of the blog “View From the Wing,�

“For there to be an injury of some kind in turbulence is about one in 1.2 million departures.”

Leff advised travelers to always take precautions.“You should still wear your seatbelt when you’re seated on the plane,” he said.

“You should still wear your seatbelt when you’re seated on the plane.”

“Four of the six flight attendants on board this flight were hurt,” he added. “They’re up in the aisles, they’re working, they don’t have the opportunity most of the time to stay belted.It is more dangerous.”

Passengers on the flight described terrifying moments inside the cabin as people were thrown from their seats and into the ceiling.

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“It was a traumatic experience.My father was sitting next to me, and when this happened, his head touched the ceiling,” Palak Raniwala, the daughter of one of the injured passengers, told news agencyANI.“It was a terrifying experience for all of us.”

Raniwala said the turbulence was unlike anythingher family had experiencedbefore and recalled hearing panic in the voices of the crew.

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Passengers involved in the incident (not pictured) recalled terrifying scenes inside the cabin as turbulence flung people from their seats and into the ceiling.(Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

“Theflight attendantswere panicking, and the pilot himself seemed rattled — you could hear the nervousness in his voice,” she told ANI.“The whole situation left us terrified.”

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Another passenger, identified as Viviana, told the outlet that the flight appeared to be operating normally before the turbulence suddenly struck.

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“We thought we would die.It was really scary.”

“The aircraft seemed to be moving normally, but suddenly the turbulence began,” she told ANI.“I saw my sister thrown into the air from her seat.My mother wasknocked on the head.”

“We thought we would die.It was really scary.I was shaking and crying,” Viviana added.

Five passengers were discharged as of two days ago, while the remaining injured passengers and crew members continued receiving treatment.(iStock)

Leff said the passengers who are hurt are usually the ones who are being “thrown about the cabin.”

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“Even a loosely fit seatbelt is going to be protection in that event,” he said.

He added, “Flying is still a lot safer than driving.If you drive, you shouldn’t be concerned with flying.”