NEW DELHI: Fourteen people, including 10 passengers and four crew members, were injured after an Air India flight from Phuket to Delhi encountered severe clear-air turbulence during its descent on Tuesday, causing the aircraft to suddenly drop nearly 300 feet.
Flight AI 2379, carrying more than 100 passengers, briefly lost altitude, triggering panic inside the cabin. According to passenger accounts, several people who were not securely seated were thrown into the air, with some hitting the cabin ceiling before falling back into their seats. One passenger claimed a small child slipped from someone’s hands and landed nearly three rows away during the incident.
The aircraft, which had taken off from Phuket around 8:25 am, landed safely at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport around 11 am local time.
Air India said there were no serious injuries, though a small number of crew members sustained minor injuries requiring medical assessment. Some of the injured were taken to Medanta Hospital in Gurugram and India’s Spinal Injury Centre in Vasant Kunj for precautionary examination and care.
The airline’s airport team attended to the affected passengers and crew immediately after landing, officials said.