Severe turbulence on Qantas flight results in cabin crew member's broken ankle
A cabin member broke their ankle and two more were injured when a Qantas flight from Sydney to Brisbane experienced severe turbulence during landing.
The captain of the Qantas 737 did not inform the cabin crew about the expected turbulence during descent meaning they were performing pre-landing duties when the plane encountered difficult conditions on 4 May 2024, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau investigation found.
Two cabin crew sustained minor injuries including facial trauma and concussion, while a third suffered a fractured ankle and was unable to move from the rear galley floor.
The plane's customer service manager (CSM) recalled observing the cabin crew member rising off the floor and colliding with the aircraft's ceiling before falling back down and landing on their right ankle.
A travelling doctor, an off-duty cabin crew employee and two crew members remained with the injured flight attendant at the back of the aircraft, resulting in four people being out of their seats as the plane landed.
'Qantas 737 standard operating procedures rely on the customer service manager – the senior member of the cabin crew – informing the flight crew if the cabin is not secured for landing,' Dr Stuart Godley, director transport safety at Australian Transport Safety Bureau, explained.
While the customer service manager contacted the captain to inform them about the injured cabin crew member and that some passengers were standing, the captain did not recall receiving any requests for more time to prepare the cabin for landing, and twice directed all uninjured cabin crew and passengers to return to their seats, the report found.
'Landing is a critical phase of flight, and the unrestrained cabin crew and passengers were exposed to a higher risk of injury in a landing-based emergency, which in turn would have compromised the cabin crew's ability to manage any such emergency situation.
'Data shows that almost 80 per cent of serious turbulence-related injuries in airline operations are sustained by cabin crew, and the most common time for these to occur is when preparing the cabin for landing,' Dr Godley added.
Dr Godley emphasised that collaboration is essential between pilots and cabin crew to ensure service tasks are completed on time while minimising the risk of injury during known or anticipated encounters with turbulence.
'Differing understandings of the state of the cabin increases the risk of delayed responses or misaligned decision‑making, which may lead to safety being compromised,' Dr Godley said.
After the aircraft arrived at the gate at Brisbane, the seriously injured cabin crew member was attended to by ambulance personnel.
However, the other two injured cabin crew members did not receive any immediate follow up medical assessments or treatment.
While one of the injured crew self-diagnosed their facial injury the next day, the other was unaware they had sustained a concussion and operated on multiple flights while experiencing concussion symptoms before being treated.
Qantas has subsequently updated its post-event incident notification protocol to include contact with the Qantas on-call doctor in the event of significant cabin crew injury or illness.
Additionally, the airline has implemented additional controls to adequately assess the fitness of crew members after a turbulence event or other unplanned aircraft movement.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Metro
2 hours ago
- Metro
Do Trump's hardline tariffs and travel bans put off Brits from visiting the US?
Tariffs, travel bans, mass firings – if there's one thing you can be sure about with Donald Trump, it's that he'll make news. Constantly . That's even the case here in the UK, where most of his decisions have no direct impact. But is all that coverage having an effect on Brits hopping across the pond for a vacation? If you look at the dry numbers from the US National Travel and Tourism Office, you might think the answer is no. In January, the month of Trump's second inauguration, the number of UK visitors to the US was 5% higher than the previous January. February and April also saw more Brits going to the US than the same months in 2024, suggesting that far from putting people off, we may even be more keen to visit the country when it's run by Trump. ABTA, the British trade association for the travel industry, tells a similar tale. They 'haven't seen any significant changes in terms of UK-US travel post-Trump administration', a spokesperson told Metro, with 'no noticeable shifts away' from the States. But that may not be the full story. Australia-based tour company Intrepid Travel offers small-group trips to destinations as diverse as Nepal, the Galápagos Islands, Antarctica – and the United States. However, the latter has had a significant fall in interest over the past five months, with bookings from UK customers down 12%. That decline appears to be driven by one age group in particular: 21 to 30-year-olds, with whom bookings have fallen by almost a quarter. There was less of an impact for customers above that age bracket. Joanna Reeve, Intrepid's General Manager for the UK & Ireland, told Metro: 'While there is no way to know for sure what is causing the dip, negative perception of the US under the new administration could be playing a part in people's travel choices. 'New immigration rules and travel restrictions could be off-putting for potential visitors.' The country still remains popular overall, she said. According to the Office for National Statistics, the US was the sixth most popular country visited by UK residents in 2023 – though it wasn't far off Portugal and Greece in fifth and fourth place respectively. A survey for ABTA taken in summer last year – before Trump was elected, but while the presidential election campaign was in full swing – found the US came third after only Spain and France when people were asked where they planned to visit in the next 12 months. Even those who disagree with the direction of the Trump administration might want to consider visiting the US in order to mitigate its impact, Joanna suggested. She said: 'There are ways to travel there in a way that supports local people, like through supporting indigenous-led experiences. More Trending 'We're also encouraging people to visit and support the National Parks as they are facing huge cuts to their funding.' Interestingly, the attitude of young travellers with Intrepid – if they are indeed being put off by Trump – does not appear to reflect the broader UK. An Ipsos poll from just before Inauguration Day in January found 18 to 34-year-olds were the most likely age group in the UK to have a favourable view of the US President. However, 47% of Brits between those ages still disliked him compared to 31% who felt the opposite. Those aged 35 to 54 were 64% unfavourable, while 72% of those aged 55 or over felt the same. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Donald Trump roasts Elon Musk and suggests he has 'Trump derangement syndrome' MORE: Donald Trump's travel ban isn't actually about protecting Americans MORE: Fears of a serial killer prowling Texas after 38 bodies pulled from lake in three years
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
I impulsively got a cheap BBL in Turkey then almost died – I was wide awake on the operating table and vomiting blood
A WOMAN has revealed she was left traumatised after jetting to Turkey for a BBL. Kayla Jade, from Australia, claimed she almost died after getting the cut-price surgery done. 2 Taking to social media, Kayla said: "So I almost died from my first BBL (Brazilian Butt Lift) in Turkey and like I can be quite impulsive so I definitely rushed into it without thinking of the complications that the surgery may have had. "I'm all about doing what makes you feel good but I kind of wish I knew what I knew now before I got my BBLs." She revealed that she got the surgery done several years ago, and she didn't have much money, she 'cheapened out' and went to Turkey for it. The package included the surgery, flights and accommodation and she was taken straight from the airport to the clinic. But when she got there, they said the doctor was at the hospital so she had to go there for her consultation. After getting to the hospital, they spend hours looking for the doctor only to be told to head back to the clinic. The lack of organisation was just the start of Kayla's nightmare. When she eventually found the doctor, he told KAyla she didn't have enough fat for the results she wanted, something she refuted as she had been gaining weight for the surgery. She said: "It's like he was trying to lower my expectations because he knew he was gonna cheap out and do a half-a**ed job. "So I felt c**p, but I was like, I still had hope inside me." I had the same procedure as tragic BBL mum, I was moments from death & live in constant pain, they must be banned NOW Kayla soon found herself on the operating table, and recalled being awake the entire time and was able to feel everything. While they sucked the fat out of her body to place in her bum, she could feel the metal rod at work and the fat being 'sucked' off. She continued: "I remember I could hear nurses and the doctors talking and I couldn't move my body. There was nothing I could do. I was just lying there in my head screaming. Kayla Jade "I was paralysed, but I could just feel like tears running down my face because I was in so much pain. "There was nothing I could do. I was just lying there in my head screaming, but I could just feel all the stuff that was happening. I guess they didn't give me enough anesthetic." When Kayla woke up from the surgery she recalls her body violently shaking and throwing up blood because of the shock. She had also been placed on her back, despite having to lie on your stomach for six weeks after getting a BBL. After spending the first day in and out of sleep she says she was then forced to get up and walk despite being in and out of consciousness. Kayla says she begged the nurses to let her stay another night, but was refused and her stuff was packed and she was moved out. When she finally made her way back to Australia, she noticed the fat removed from her back was done unevenly leaving her lopsided. She also noticed her bum had barely increased in size, making the horrific surgery futile. In the end, Kayla decided to get the whole thing reversed in Australia before getting another BBL done there too. What are the risks of getting surgery abroad? IT'S important to do your research if you're thinking about having cosmetic surgery abroad. It can cost less than in the UK, but you need to weigh up potential savings against the potential risks. Safety standards in different countries may not be as high. No surgery is risk-free. Complications can happen after surgery in the UK or abroad. If you have complications after an operation in the UK, the surgeon is responsible for providing follow-up treatment. Overseas clinics may not provide follow-up treatment, or they may not provide it to the same standard as in the UK. Also, they may not have a healthcare professional in the UK you can visit if you have any problems. Source: NHS "Please don't cheapen out like what I did and end up in some crazy situation," Kayla added. The clip soon went viral on her TikTok account @ blueeyedkaylajade with over 148k likes and people were quick to share their thoughts. One person wrote: "Kayla, I haven't even finished the vid yet and this is a horror story." Another commented: 'Anesthesia awareness is my worst nightmare!" "BBL's are never worth it. The most dangerous surgery ever," penned a third. Meanwhile a fourth said: "Wow I am imagining this experience as you talk and I am in pain." "The recovery alone for a BBL is a no for me haha,' claimed a fifth.
Auto Blog
2 hours ago
- Auto Blog
Safety vs. Savings: Why Experts Can't Agree on ADAS Impact on Car Insurance Premiums
ADAS safety comes with a costly catch Advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) like automatic emergency braking have been making roads safer for years, but their presence can be viewed as a double-edged sword given their negative impact on auto insurance claims. On the upside, in 2022, AAA reported how Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) data from 2010-2015 found that vehicles equipped with automatic emergency braking exhibited a 50% decrease in police-reported rear-end crashes relative to equivalent cars without the system. Another study found that automatic emergency braking systems reduced the U.K.'s number of claims by 25% over five years, but it discovered that claim costs increased by a whopping 60%, according to Carscoops. Previous Pause Next Unmute 0:00 / 0:09 Walmart is selling a 'heavy duty' $89 step ladder for $48, and shoppers say it's 'sturdy and secure' Walmart is selling a 'heavy duty' $89 step ladder for $48, and shoppers say it's 'sturdy and secure' Watch More On the downside, expenses for fixing ADAS require pricey components like cameras, LiDAR, and radar, and the proper equipment necessary for their calibration. Equipment for calibrating these parts can cost up to $1 million, making it difficult for the average corner garage to invest. To make matters more complicated, automakers are committed to making features like automatic emergency braking an essential part of all new cars by 2029, as outlined in the Federal Register. Volvo EX90 LiDAR — Source: Getty More expensive repairs don't always equal higher insurance premiums, some experts say Additional examples of ADAS include, but aren't limited to, lane departure warning or prevention, parking sensors, and blind-spot monitoring. Essentially, anything adding to an insurer's losses can raise your premium. ADAS components are often located outside a vehicle, increasing the chances of damage during an accident. A 2023 report by AAA discovered that ADAS repairs represented a 36% average of the total cost of repairs in four common collision scenarios. Additionally, ADAS accounted for 40.9% of total repair costs in rear collision repairs. However, Tony Cotto, Director of Auto and Underwriting policy at the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (NAMIC), said: 'We're seeing AEB, especially, really bring down rear-end crashes, and some of those are the lower-dollar-value claims,' according to Bankrate. Car radar and cameras — Source: Getty In other words, reducing the frequency of small claims, even if remaining claims are higher, reduces overall losses for insurers, potentially reducing premiums. Jessica Cicchino, IIHS senior vice president for research, echoed this sentiment: 'Across the board, insurers are paying out less money on claims for vehicles with [AEB] systems because the reduction in crashes is outweighing the increase in the cost.' However, this doesn't rule out the possibility of drivers with ADAS facing higher repair costs if they get into accidents, especially with how precise the repairs are. Automotive News reports that: 'Sensor[s] misaligned by a single degree—about the depth of a business card—can throw it [radar sensors] off target by 66 inches at a distance of 100 yards.' Autoblog Newsletter Autoblog brings you car news; expert reviews and exciting pictures and video. Research and compare vehicles, too. Sign up or sign in with Google Facebook Microsoft Apple By signing up I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy . You may unsubscribe from email communication at anytime. Final thoughts While the belief that ADAS is increasing insurance premiums through higher claims isn't universally held among experts, some drivers repairing these systems won't be able to avoid a higher bill, and this won't change until the tech gets more affordable. A Wall Street Journal article from November cited vehicle maintenance and repair costs as increasing 28% over the past three years, and during Q2 2024, the average repair cost for an insurance claim was $4,721—up about $800 from over three years ago. About the Author Cody Carlson View Profile
