SQ321 LHR-SIN Encountered Severe Turbulence [At least 1 Fatality and 30 Injured]

[Quickstatus]

The media are not exactly scrupulous when it comes to getting a story. I doubt they have the passengers' best interests in mind.

 

[bussyboy]

I figured the staff were trying to shield the patient from the media who were pouncing and grilling with questions... let the man get his coffee and get back to bed rest!

 

[Sprucegoose]

I find these confusing priorities. Wife in ICU? Why seek media attention? If you need medical help then get it and focus on recovery after which contact your underwriter if that is necessary.

BKK is a good place to be for competent medical care.

 

[Pushka]

I find these confusing priorities. Wife in ICU? Why seek media attention? If you need medical help then get it and focus on recovery after which contact your underwriter if that is necessary.

BKK is a good place to be for competent medical care.

Think we have to cut him some slack. He is injured. His wife is critically injured. He has no personal supports over there. He is lacking in information and just wants it from the source. Its been agreed that SQ hadn't contacted him about anything until yesterday, maybe the evening before. He's not in a good place and right now the usual decision making processes are beyond him. Right now whether or not the hospital is treating them well isn't relevant to him. He just wants to know if SQ will medivac her back to Australia.

 

[jb747]

I can’t see any reason for the Thai staff to be protective of SQ at all. Their hospital and country would be another matter.

 

[Pushka]

I can’t see any reason for the Thai staff to be protective of SQ at all. Their hospital and country would be another matter.

I heard it was because they thought he was going to criticise the hospital services and not SQ. But now the term 'privacy concerns' has been used which of course is an easy out.

 

[GarrettM]

What hope have we got for accurate reporting when that self-congratulatory bastion of 'Academic rigour; journalistic flair' The Conversation writes this in today's newsletter?:

View attachment 385977

Not content with 6000 feet.

It had to dramatise it to "...plummeted almost two kilometres..."

Journalistic 'flair' certainly trumped 'academic rigour'...

To be fair though... 6000 feet is almost two kilometres.

So the maths is roughly right, even if the underlying facts are somewhat different.

 

[JohnM]

To be fair though... 6000 feet is almost two kilometres.

So the maths is roughly right, even if the underlying facts are somewhat different.

With respect, you have missed the point.

 

[jpp42]

Now also being reported by the ABC: Australian couple 'in limbo' for medical evacuation after being injured in Singapore Airlines flight

One of the things that stood out to me from this article was "Of the 40 people on the flight still under treatment, 22 patients have spinal cord injuries and six have brain and skull injuries, Dr Adinun said."

Twenty-plus people with spinal cord injuries, how many of those will be permanently disabling?

This is no ordinary turbulence encounter.

 

[Pushka]

One of the things that stood out to me from this article was "Of the 40 people on the flight still under treatment, 22 patients have spinal cord injuries and six have brain and skull injuries, Dr Adinun said."

Twenty-plus people with spinal cord injuries, how many of those will be permanently disabling?

This is no ordinary turbulence encounter.

The wife of the man who is being discussed above apparently has no sensation below her waist. Hopefully that's temporary.

 

[Quickstatus]

. But now the term 'privacy concerns' has been used which of course is an easy out.

I think it's the media trying to criticise the hospital staff trying to prevent the throngs of media harassing the passengers. There are a lot of other sick people in a hospital - they don't get a mention. I do understand there might be a public interest component to a story like this

 

[Princess Fiona]

The wife of the man who is being discussed above apparently has no sensation below her waist. Hopefully that's temporary.

Sadly I think it’s unlikely to be temporary.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Sadly I think it’s unlikely to be temporary.

And really unfortunately, this is where it potentially starts the legal minefield.

The airline’s liability may be capped here, unless the passenger can show negligence. Were there previous aircraft flying the same route? How far ahead were those aircraft? Did those aircraft report turbulence? Should the seatbelt sign have been on already? Did the passenger follow the recommendation to keep their seat belt fastened while seated? Should the ‘recommendation’ to keep your seatbelt fastened at all times be upgraded to a safety ‘instruction’ or ‘requirement’, especially when flying through areas prone to turbulence?

 

[OZDUCK]

Singapore Airlines have announced changes to their procedures when the seatbelt light is on. No more meal service etc

 

[jpp42]

Singapore Airlines have announced changes to their procedures when the seatbelt light is on. No more meal service etc

Do you have a new article on that? I saw one on Bloomberg but it's paywalled and can't figure out how to bypass it.

But that sounds good, it will help the seatbelt sign be taken more seriously if staff are required to stow their carts and sit down too (as occurs on some Chinese airlines, I believe). It may also help put pressure on the flight deck to turn the lights off when things are obviously smooth as well, because the cabin manager will likely query it after a while when they can't get their service restarted.

 

[OZDUCK]

Do you have a new article on that? I saw one on Bloomberg but it's paywalled and can't figure out how to bypass it.

But that sounds good, it will help the seatbelt sign be taken more seriously if staff are required to stow their carts and sit down too (as occurs on some Chinese airlines, I believe). It may also help put pressure on the flight deck to turn the lights off when things are obviously smooth as well, because the cabin manager will likely query it after a while when they can't get their service restarted.

I read it on CNA (Channel News Asia) by searching for Singapore news. Sorry I am too stoopid to post the link on my phone.

 

[AIRwin]

I read it on CNA (Channel News Asia) by searching for Singapore news.

This?

No meal service when seat belt sign on: Singapore Airlines adjusts turbulence measures in wake of SQ321

The carrier said it is adopting a "more cautious approach" to managing turbulence.

www.channelnewsasia.com

 

[OZDUCK]

This?

No meal service when seat belt sign on: Singapore Airlines adjusts turbulence measures in wake of SQ321

The carrier said it is adopting a "more cautious approach" to managing turbulence.

www.channelnewsasia.com

Thankyou that is the one. Hey, I have just learnt how to copy links! Wonders will never end.

No meal service when seat belt sign on: Singapore Airlines adjusts turbulence measures in wake of SQ321

The carrier said it is adopting a "more cautious approach" to managing turbulence.

www.channelnewsasia.com

 

[AIRwin]

Hey, I have just learnt how to copy links! Wonders will never end.

You're no longer the weakest link... Hello!

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Singapore Airlines have announced changes to their procedures when the seatbelt light is on. No more meal service etc

I can’t help feel that’s a knee-jerk reaction, that won’t benefit the vast majority of pax.

Qantas is the only airline I know of where seatbelt sign equally applies to crew.

But that being said, the turbulence is often more than ‘mild’ for that to occur.

SQ on the other hand will put the sign on even for some mild bumps. So we could have hours at a time with no service, when it’s safe for crew, but not safe for grandpa to be moving around the cabin?

Delaying meal service for hours has implications for crew rest periods. They need their assigned breaks on long and ultra long haul flights, and i wouldn’t want those to be given up.

And potentially it won’t protect against this very sudden and very violent turbulence in any case?