Flight from Hell photos from Hawaiian Airlines show the moment after the plane took a nosedive on its way to Sydney Airport
On board the flight from hell: Shocking photos show damage after plane nosedive en route to Sydney, throwing passengers out of their seats
- Hawaiian Airlines flight experienced ‘severe turbulence’
- Photos show bent panels and cracked ceilings
- Four people were taken to hospital with injuries
- Passenger claims that plane dived 1,000 meters in seconds
Shocking photos have emerged of the damage done to the cabin of a Hawaiian Airlines plane after the flight was hit by severe turbulence while traveling to Sydney.
The HA451 flight from Honolulu, in Hawaii, encountered high winds and encountered “severe turbulence” about five hours into the nine-hour, forty-five minute flight, as it flew over the Pacific Ocean.
The plane went into a nosedive, causing passengers to fly out of their seats and fall to the ground.
Emergency services awaited the occupants of the plane after it landed at Sydney Airport at 7:47 p.m. on Friday.
Paramedics treated a dozen people before taking a passenger and three flight attendants to hospital with injuries and back pain.
A passenger shared two images with Reddit of ‘damage to the cabin caused by human bodies flying out of seats’ after the plane entered shocking turbulence.’
The HA451 flight from Honolulu to Sydney encountered “severe turbulence” that knocked passengers out of their seats. The ceiling panel in the walkway between the seats was bent after a person was thrown against it (photo)
Another image shared by a passenger on the flight showed a huge crack next to the control panel above a person’s seat (pictured)
One image showed a ceiling panel in the walkway between the seats bent out of shape, while another showed a huge crack next to the control panels above a passenger’s head.
The traveler explained that passengers and crew members were thrown around the cabin as the plane plunged between 800 and 1,000 meters at a speed of about 950 km/h.
“We were told over the intercom that the turbulence was about to get bad and that we should all buckle up and not get up to go to the bathroom,” they wrote.
“Before the sentence ended, the plane started shaking like crazy before pushing the nose down and the engines propelling us down at 950 mph.
“The pilot recovered us after a few seconds – but according to the altitude readings on the in-flight radar on the screen before and after the dive, we descended somewhere between 800 meters and 1 km in those few seconds.”
Social media users criticized passengers for not wearing seatbelts during the flight, saying the safety measure would have prevented injury.
However, the passenger called for an end to “the seatbelt comments,” claiming that the time between the verbal warning and the event was only a few seconds.
“Nobody can avoid an entire 11-hour flight to pee, and the time between the verbal warning on the intercom and the event was barely a few seconds,” they wrote.
“In addition, most of the seriously injured were crew members who did not have the luxury of wearing their seatbelts all the time.”
They added the cries of fellow passengers and crew members would stay with them forever and hope those taken to hospital recover quickly.
“I think we’re just really shocked by it,” they wrote.
Hawaii Airlines explained that the Airbus A330 had been inspected prior to boarding and thanked Sydney Airport first responders for their assistance.
“Our Airbus A330 aircraft with 163 passengers and 12 crew members on board landed at Sydney Airport without incident,” Hawaiian Airlines said in a statement.
“Our number one priority is to continue to care for our passengers and crew impacted by this turbulence, and we thank Sydney Airport first responders for their prompt assistance.
The Airbus A330, carrying 163 passengers and 12 crew members, has landed safely at Sydney Airport. Twelve people were treated by paramedics and four were taken to hospital with injuries
Hawaiian Airlines Flight HA451 was hit by high winds about five hours into the nine-hour, forty-five minute flight. A passenger claimed the plane dived between 800 and 1,000 meters in ‘a few seconds’
“We thoroughly inspected the aircraft before boarding HA452, which departed from Sydney to Honolulu,” Hawaii Airlines said.
It comes as hundreds of flights at airports in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane were plagued by widespread delays and cancellations due to high winds and staffing issues.
Travelers along the East Coast faced airport chaos for a third day in a row over the weekend as heavy gusts brought flights to a standstill.
Passengers are urged to arrive at the airport early for their flight and keep track of their flight details.