Plane flying to New Zealand plunges mid-flight, 12 people taken to hospital

Plane from Australia to New Zealand experiences technical difficulty mid-flight

A LATAM Airlines flight from Sydney to New Zealand reportedly plunged mid-flight after the pilot had “temporarily lost control” of the plane.

A passenger told CNN the plane had allegedly plunged an estimated “500 feet” (152 meters).

About 50 passengers were injured due to the incident, with 12 taken to the hospital to be treated further, reported CNN.

Pilot lost control of the plane

According to the New Zealand Herald, the plane experienced a sudden loss of altitude about two hours into the three-hour flight, causing the plane to plunge for what a passenger thought to be about 10 seconds.

After safely landing in Auckland on Monday (11 March), the pilot checked on the passengers and claimed to have “temporarily lost control of the jet”.

“He said for that brief moment he couldn’t control anything and that’s when the plane did what it did,” a passenger told CNN.

“Then he said the gauges came back and it re-engaged, the plane just re-engaged to its normal flight pattern. And we had no issues before, no issues after. But just that moment.”

Passengers were flung from their seats

Passenger Brian Jokat described his experience to CNN, saying he saw his fellow passengers “fly out of their seats and hit the ceiling of the plane”.

“People were screaming and crying… it was mass chaos for a few short seconds,” he recounted.

“Clearly there was a moment in my head that I just kind of resigned to the fact this could be it.”

Another passenger, 28-year-old Clara Azevedo told New Zealand Herald it “felt like a miracle” when the plane reverted to normal.

“We were not sure if we were going to make it or not,” she said.

Ms Azevedo also told New Zealand Herald that a 68-year-old passenger sitting near her had broken two ribs and injured her shoulder.

Passengers were given little support after the incident

Upon landing, the passengers aboard the LATAM flight were given a single McDonald’s cheeseburger while waiting at the terminal.

While LATAM has provided hotel accommodations for its affected passengers, some had issues with the airline’s communications since the incident.

Ms Azevedo was displeased by the lack of support the passengers received.

“We are all traumatized, and we had to find strength to help people out,” she told New Zealand Herald.

“This is not our responsibility. It is LATAM’s — but they haven’t done anything, that’s very frustrating.”

LATAM Airlines has released several statements since the incident. In a statement on 12 March, the airline said that the plane “experienced a strong shake during the flight”.

“LATAM is working in coordination with the respective authorities to support the investigations into the incident,” read the statement.

The airline also confirmed that only one passenger and one cabin crew member needed additional medical attention, “but without any life-threatening risks”.

The others who had been brought to the medical centre were discharged shortly after.

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Featured image adapted from video footage on New Zealand Herald.