Today a Qantas flight
taking off from Hong Kong bound for Perth, experienced
severe turbulence over Borneo Malaysia,
resulting in several minor injuries to several passengers and crew.
Qantas have released the
following statement on the incident:
Qantas said today that the aircraft
operating QF68 between Hong Kong and Perth overnight
encountered severe turbulence over Borneo in Malaysia
approximately 4 hours out of Hong Kong.
As a result, it is understood 6
passengers and 1 crew member have sustained minor injuries and are being
treated on board. There were 206 passengers and 13 flight and cabin crew on the
aircraft.
The aircraft is operating normally and,
following medical advice, is proceeding to Perth. It is scheduled to land at around 7:30
local time.
The aircraft is an Airbus A330-300,
and the incident has been reported to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau
(ATSB), which will investigate.
There is no reason to link the
incident to other recent in-flight incidents involving A330 aircraft.
The aircraft was being flown by an
experienced crew led by Captain Brett Flack.
The Captain has reported minor
damage to 2 overhead panels in the cabin and 2 oxygen masks were dislodged.
A Qantas support team, along with
medical personnel, will be at Perth
Airport for the arrival
of the flight.
Enquiries regarding passengers
should be directed to:
- 1800 062 241
(in Australia);
or
- +61 7 3238
7977 (worldwide).