Severe turbulence during EgyptAir flight injures 12

Ten passengers and two flight attendants were injured when an EgyptAir flight from New York to Cairo experienced unexpected turbulence as an in-flight meal was being served, state-owned Al-Ahram gate reported.

According to the national carrier’s website, three doctors among the passengers attended to those who were injured during the 12-hour flight on Tuesday. Paramedics received the injured passengers upon their arrival to Cairo airport.

One of the passengers, Yasmeen Abouel-Nour, complained on her Facebook page of the crew’s mismanagement of the situation. According to her testimony, the turbulence did not result in the seatbelt sign being switched on, and passengers and flight attendants were thrown off their seats unexpectedly, colliding into each other and the aircraft's windows and ceiling.

A crew member told her that the aircraft experienced a sudden 700-foot drop, and that it took 40 seconds for the pilot to regain control over the aircraft, causing her to speculate that the pilot was not present in the cockpit at the time.

The airplane was also not equipped with any first-aid necessities, she added, forcing doctors who happened to be on board to treat injuries using small bandages, sanitary sprays, ice and coffee grounds to stop bleeding. One passenger, according to Abouel-Nour, was visibly trembling after "extensive blood loss," but was only provided with tea. The passengers had to wait for the remaining 10 hours of the trip before receiving adequate medical attention upon their arrival to Cairo Airport.

Ahram reports that Minister of Civilian Aviation Hossam Kamal, the head of EgyptAir and other officials in the company met with passengers at the airport and visited patients who were taken to the EgyptAir hospital.