The flight from Istanbul to New York hit turbulence 45 minutes before landing
As many as 30 people have been injured after a flight travelling from the Turkish city of Istanbul to New York hit severe turbulence over the state of Maine.
The turbulence is believed to have hit the flight 45 minutes before it landed, and resulted in passengers and flight attendants being thrown into the air and around the cabin.
Passengers were reported to have sustained injuries such as bruising, bumps and cuts, while a flight attendant sustained a broken leg.
The flight touched down at John F. Kennedy airport at 5.35pm local time, where dozens of ambulances were lining up to treat those injured.
“Nobody announced it or anything like that so we figured out something was wrong,” Sead Nikaj, a passenger on the plane, told ABC News. “Then I see people start flying on the plane. Then seeing blood all over. I had one of the ladies next to me, she really fell down from her seat on the floor and all her back was completely bloody, while someone that was working in the airplane, she cracked her leg I think completely.”
In a statement issued on Sunday, Turkish Airlines said it was “deeply saddened by this unfortunate experience, and closely monitors the health status of injured passengers, and is making resources available to them”.
