TORONTO- Air Canada (AC) Flight AC19 from Vancouver (YVR) to Singapore (SIN) encountered severe turbulence two hours into its 16-hour journey on Friday morning (October 11, 2024).
The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner experienced “major bumps” over the North Pacific, causing passengers, food, and drinks to be thrown across the cabin.
Air Canada Flight Turbulence
A Reddit user shared photos depicting the aftermath, showing food splattered across the cabin aisle and overhead bins. The turbulence left drinks dripping from the ceiling and debris scattered over the seats.
Passengers described the experience as similar to a rollercoaster with moments of weightlessness. One traveler reported having coffee drip on them from the ceiling and finding rice in their hair afterward.
The sudden turbulence (also known as Clear Air Turbulence) caught everyone off guard, according to passenger accounts. Despite the chaos, no injuries were reported among passengers or crew members, and no emergency landing was necessary.
Cabin crew responded promptly, cleaning up “as much as possible” while the flight continued its journey to Singapore. Passengers praised the crew for maintaining control of the situation during and after the turbulent episode.
One passenger wrote,
I started cleaning my area like mad while shaking and trying to calm myself and holding back tears. I was on my way to see my husband, whom I hadn’t seen in 4 months. It was tough!!!! But I’d imagine this must be a rare incident. Air Canada staff were all amazing, I don’t hold this against them at all. They did great to get us out of it.
Flight AC19 October 11 passenger on Reddit
According to Flight Radar 24 data, the 16 hours of flight took off 25 minutes late and arrived 20 minutes late in Singapore. The flight AC19 was operated by Boeing 787-9 which has highly flexible wings to counter such severe turbulence.
However, it was so extreme that it forced everyone to stick on their seats and no movements were allowed for a couple of hours. The aircraft registered as C-FGDT is 8.7 years old as per Planespotters.net data and is powered by GEnX engines.
Types of Turbulence
While it’s not rare to face turbulence on flights. But some are so extreme that it injures crew and passengers and also damages the aircraft structure. The aircraft is designed to withstand the most drastic kind of turbulence but cannot save people inside with injuries.
Clear Air Turbulence (CAT) poses a significant challenge for aviation. This sudden, severe turbulence occurs in cloudless regions, causing violent aircraft buffeting. CAT typically occurs above 15,000 feet, often between jet streams and surrounding air.
Types of Clear Air Turbulence:
- Mechanical: Disrupts smooth horizontal airflow
- Thermal: Caused by vertical air currents in unstable atmospheres
These are some of the common reasons for CAT:
- Jet streams are narrow, fast-moving air currents near the tropopause. They create significant vertical and horizontal wind shear, leading to severe CAT.
- Terrain: High ground disturbs horizontal airflow, causing turbulence.
- Thunderstorm Complexes: Cumulonimbus (Cb) cells generate strong vertical currents.
Similar Incidents
Last month, Scoot (TR), the low-cost subsidiary of Singapore Airlines (SQ) flight from Singapore (SIN) to Guangzhou (CAN) faced severe turbulence. Following this seven individuals reported injuries. The same 787 Dreamliner was involved in the incident.
Similarly, Turkish Airlines (TK) flight TK24 from Istanbul (IST) to Taipei (TPE) encountered intense turbulence, injuring six people. The incident affected the flight operated by Boeing 777-300ER, registered as TC-JJE, carrying 214 passengers and 17 crew members.
On August 28, 2024, United Airlines (UA) Flight UA1196 executed an emergency landing at Memphis International Airport (MEM) after experiencing extreme turbulence. The incident resulted in injuries to seven passengers, with one needing hospital admission.
On August 8, 2024, an American Airlines (AA) flight from Tampa (TPA) to Charlotte (CLT) underwent agonizing turbulence, injuring two attendants. There were 154 passengers, four flight attendants, and two flight crew onboard AA2905.
In May, Intense turbulence on a Singapore Airlines (SQ) flight SQ321 from London Heathrow (LHR) resulted in fatality and injuries to many individuals. It became global news after the airline officially posted on its social media.
So no matter what flight phase you are in, Always keep your seat belt fastened.
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