Twelve people traveling on a Qatar Airways flight from Doha to Ireland were injured during turbulence, Dublin Airport reported on Sunday, noting that the plane landed safely and as scheduled.
Flight QR017, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, touched down shortly before 1 p.m. Dublin time (1200 GMT), according to the airport.
“Upon landing, the aircraft was met by emergency services, including Airport Police and our Fire and Rescue department, due to 6 passengers and 6 crew members reporting injuries after the aircraft experienced turbulence while airborne over Turkey,” Dublin Airport said in a statement.
Irish broadcaster RTE, citing passengers, reported that the turbulence incident lasted less than 20 seconds and occurred during food and drinks service.
Qatar Airways stated that a “small number” of passengers and crew sustained minor injuries during the flight and were receiving medical attention.
The airline did not directly comment on the turbulence but mentioned that the matter is subject to an internal investigation.
The incident occurred just five days after a Singapore Airlines flight from London to Singapore had to make an emergency landing in Bangkok due to severe turbulence.
This turbulence caused the death of a 73-year-old British man and left 20 others in intensive care.
According to a 2021 study by the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board, turbulence-related accidents are the most common type of airline incident.
From 2009 to 2018, the agency found that turbulence accounted for over a third of reported airline accidents, most of which resulted in one or more serious injuries, though no aircraft damage.
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