'Significant' turbulence on Delta flight sends dozens to the hospital
- Medical personnel boarded the flight after it landed safely at around 7:45 p.m.
- The plane was diverted to Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport after it encountered turbulence.
A Delta Air Lines flight from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam was diverted to Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport on July 30 after encountering "significant turbulence" that resulted in 25 people being transported to hospitals, the airline said.
Medical personnel boarded the flight immediately after it landed safely at around 7:45 p.m. to evaluate those aboard, the airline said in a statement. The plane was carrying 275 passengers and a crew of 13.
One passenger told ABC News that people who weren’t wearing seat belts were tossed around the cabin as meal carts bounced in the aisles.
“They (passengers) hit the ceiling, and then they fell to the ground,” Leann Clement-Nash said. "The carts also hit the ceiling and fell to the ground and people were injured. It happened several times, so it was really scary.”
Delta flight DL56, an Airbus A330-900, had barely begun its eight-hour flight when it altered course, landing in Minnesota about two hours after taking off from Salt Lake City, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware.
The plane encountered turbulence shortly after reaching 37,000 feet, briefly climbing to about 38,000 feet before descending to just below 35,800 feet. It later stabilized at an altitude of 37,000 feet, according to flight-tracking service Flightradar24.
Delta providing for passengers' 'immediate needs'
Delta said it was providing support for those injured and everyone on the flight.
"We are grateful for the support of all emergency responders involved," the airline said in a statement. "Safety is our No. 1 value at Delta, and our Delta Care Team is working directly with customers to support their immediate needs."
Turbulence growing more severe
Turbulence is growing more common, according to a 2023 study by researchers at the University of Reading in the U.K. Paul Williams, a professor of atmospheric science, said severe "clear air turbulence" − CAT − is 41% more common over the United States now than it was in 1979.
CAT, the most common type of turbulence, generally peaks in winter when the jet stream is strongest, Williams told Paste BN. Convective turbulence, caused by warm air rising and often linked to a storm, is more common in summer, Williams said. Mountain wave turbulence happens when wind hits a mountain and is forced upward. That's why a bumpy ride is common when flying over the Rockies on a transcontinental flight.
"We have very strong evidence now in many published studies that turbulence is stronger today than it was in 1979," when satellite observations of turbulence began, he said.
Guy Gratton, an associate professor of aviation and the environment at Cranfield University, says climate change is a factor. He told Business Insider the warming atmosphere speeds up jet streams — causing more and severe turbulence in the skies.
How to stay safe if your plane encounters turbulence
Most experts agree that the best way to stay safe in turbulence is to keep your seat belt fastened at all times when seated. Especially when it comes to clear air turbulence, which can be harder for pilots to detect and for airline weather forecasters to predict, there may not be enough time for the seat belt sign to activate before the bumps begin.
"One thing (regulators) could do is say: 'whenever you’re seated, you should have your seat belt fastened.' That would save hospital visits and it would even save lives, potentially," Williams said. "Just about everybody who is injured by turbulence is someone who was not seat belted during the turbulence.”
Contributing: Reuters