Shocking moment turbulence injures 30 and forces plane to land as passenger has to be removed from overhead locker
THIS is the shocking moment a passenger was pulled from an overhead locker after turbulence injured 30 and forced emergency landing.
The man’s legs could be seen hanging in the cabin as fellow travellers scrambled to pull him to safety after disastrous flight UX045 from Madrid, Spain to Montevideo, Uruguay.
A two-year-old tot was also pulled from suitcases above after being ejected from his seat amid the chaos.
Disturbing footage revealed carnage left behind after the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner was forced to divert and emergency land in Natal, Brazil today.
The feeling was terror, feeling like you are falling and that it doesn’t end
Terrified passenger
In the concerning video, holidaymakers could see ceiling panels dislodged, oxygen masks dangling eerily above, and one seat snapped from impact.
Other horrifying clips showed travellers laying on the plane floor in neck braces as they awaited medical attention.
After landing, paramedics found 30 injured passengers, an estimated 23 of which were raced to hospital.
Dr. Cecília Lagucci, whose toddler was thrown from his seat, told local Brazilian news: “My husband and I were looking for the little one, who is two-years-old.
“And we found him above the suitcases. Part of the plane collapsed and the child was up there crying.
“My husband had to go and bring him back down.”
The traumatised doctor recalled people “flying” over her as the horror unfolded.
“I felt the plane falling and I thought, ‘It’s going to stabilize now’,” she said.
“But then it kept falling and falling. Until they stabilized the plane and I was able to get up.”
Meanwhile another traveller told Uruguayan newspaper El Observador that flyers were told to fasten their seatbelts.
She said it went from “very slight turbulence” to “the plane abruptly falls”.
“Those who did not have a seatbelt flew and some remained hooked to the ceiling. It lasted like 3.5 seconds,” she added.
The terrified flyer claimed the injured were forced to lay on the floor for up to three hours before help could reach them.
And, Juan, an Argentine lawyer on the ill-fated flight said: “The feeling was terror, feeling like you are falling and that it doesn’t end.
“And you are aware that you are falling at an incalculable speed.
“And you felt that it ended there, that you died. (That was) until we began to see on the screen that the plane began to rise.”
Air Europa posted a statement on X on Monday morning which read: “We inform that our clients are moving to Recife, where they will stay and then travel to Montevideo.
“Natal was the airport that could serve passengers with medical needs the fastest.
“As it is not an AirEuropa destination, company personnel also travel to Natal and Recife to provide better service to our customers.
“All people who have required health care are being treated in centers in Natal.
“Passengers will be notified with updated information about this operation. We will update with more information.”
The Sun contacted Air Europa for comment.
It comes after a British granddad died of a heart attack in horror turbulence earlier this year.
Geoff Kitchen, 73, died of a heart attack after the Singapore Airlines Boeing flight plunged 7,000ft in just six minutes sparking mid-air panic.
Meanwhile, 12 passengers and crew were injured on a Qatar Airways flight after experiencing intense turbulence.
The jet was on its way from Doha to Dublin when it began shaking as it flew over Turkey, just days after the deadly Singapore Airlines flight.