Brit describes carnage on turbulence

Passengers have described the carnage that unfolded when a Singapore Airlines jet plummeted 6,000ft amid terrifying turbulence - leaving one passenger dead and 30 injured.

Authorities have said the deceased is a 73-year-old British man, and that he likely died due to a heart attack during the 'chaotic' incident. They added that he was travelling with his wife, who is now in hospital.

Andrew Davies, an events manager from Lewisham who was on the flight, described how the unnamed man received CPR from fellow passengers before he tragically lost his life.

The plane's sudden drop flung passengers into the air, with those not wearing seatbelts said to have sustained horrific injuries including 'head lacerations and bleeding ears'.

'The seatbelt sign came on, I put on my seatbelt straightaway then the plane just dropped,' Mr Davies wrote on X of the horror flight, adding that a member of cabin crew told him it was 'by far the worst in her 30 years of flying'.

Mr Davies said that 'lots of people' were injured - 'including the air stewards who were stoic and did everything they could.'

He added that he and fellow passengers who were not injured are now in a holding area at at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok, where the flight from Heathrow to Singapore was forced to make an emergency landing.

Andrew Davies praised 'stoic' air stewards for their bravery

A passenger died and 30 others were injured on a flight from London to Singapore this afternoon forcing an emergency landing in Thailand. Pictured: The plane and ambulances are seen on the tarmac at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok today

A passenger onboard a Singapore Airlines jet from the UK has described the extreme turbulence that killed a fellow flyer in a tragic incident today. Pictured: Passengers and crew are seen in the aftermath of the extreme turbulence on the Singapore Airlines plane today

Mr Davies, who was en route to Wellington in New Zealand for work, said: 'My heart goes out to the gentleman who lost his life and his poor wife. Awful experience. 

'Passengers with medical training helping as much as they could. CPR on the poor gentleman that passed,' he said adding that they had 'shouted for a defibrulator'.

'Another passenger laid flat in aisle further behind me. Not sure what happened with them. Wish I could have helped more.'

Davies told The Times that the crew had been 'on their feet when it happened and afterwards I don't think I saw a single one of them who wasn't injured. 

'One of the men was clearly in a lot of back pain but he, and the rest of them, stoically carried on anyway.'

'Lesson is - wear a seatbelt at ALL TIMES,' he said. 'Anyone who is injured, was not wearing a seatbelt. People who kept them on (including me) are not (as far as I could tell).'

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Singapore Airlines flight horror as one person is killed and multiple others injured when UK-Singapore flight is hit by turbulence and plummets for several minutes before diverting to Bangkok

'People's belongings scattered, coffee and water splattered the ceiling. Surreal. So many injured people - head lascerations, bleeding ears. A lady was screaming in pain with a bad back. I couldn't help her - just got her water.'

He said that when the plane landed 'Bangkok emergency services [were] quick to respond. Very little warning.'

Describing the dramatic events, Dzafran Azmir, who was on board the flight, said: 'Suddenly the aircraft starts tilting up and there was shaking so I started bracing for what was happening, and very suddenly there was a very dramatic drop so everyone seated and not wearing seatbelt was launched immediately into the ceiling.

'Some people hit their heads on the baggage cabins overhead and dented it, they hit the places where lights and masks are and broke straight through it,' the 28-year-old student said.

Meanwhile a mother has described her agonising wait after receiving a chilling message from her son, who was on the flight.

Allison Barker told the BBC that her son Josh, who was on his way to Bali, texted her at 9.10am this morning.

'I don't want to scare you, but I'm on a crazy flight. The plane is making an emergency landing… I love you all,' his message read.

'It was terrifying,' she said. 'I didn't know what was going on. We didn't know whether he'd survived, it was so nerve wracking. It was the longest two hours of my life. It was awful; it was petrifying.'

Allison said she was finally able to speak to her son, who fortunately had only sustained minor injuries in the incident. 

The Boeing 777 plane operated by Singapore Airlines left the UK's Heathrow airport on Monday evening at 22.17pm local time with 211 passengers and 18 crew on board.

A person is seen being carried away from the aircraft on a stretcher today in Bangkok

This flight tracker showed the plane's route from London before diverting to Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok

Flight tracking websites showed flight SQ321 diverting from its planned route to Singapore and instead landing at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok

In a statement on Facebook (pictured), Singapore Airlines confirmed the emergency landing

Hours later, flight SQ321 experienced severe turbulence while flying close to Myanmar airspace in a region currently being battered by extreme tropical thunderstorms.

The aircraft stayed 31,000 feet for just under 10 minutes before rapidly descending and landing in Bangkok in just under half an hour. The descent happened as the flight was over the Andaman Sea approaching Myanmar.

The plane - registered 9V-SWM - was diverted to the Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok where it made an emergency landing at 15.45pm local time, the airline announced on its Facebook page. 

It had been scheduled to land at the Singapore Changi Airport at 6.10pm local time.