Significant turbulence sent 25 people to the hospital on a Delta Airlines flight, which was diverted to Minneapolis after the midair chaos Wednesday night.
Delta Flight 56 was on its way from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam when it encountered serious turbulence over southeast Wyoming, according to flight tracking data. There were 275 passengers and 13 crew members on board.
The aircraft, an Airbus 330-900, left Utah’s capital city at 4:30 p.m., and flight attendants had just started serving food and drinks when the plane began getting tossed around in the air, multiple passengers said.
“Every [crew member] flew and hit the ceiling, the beverage carts also flew into the air,” one passenger told Salt Lake City Fox affiliate KSTU. “Any items that were loose in the cabin got thrown everywhere. [The] plane is a mess, covered in liquids and service items.”
After the intense disruption, the flight changed course and headed for Minneapolis, where it landed just before 8 p.m. local time.
Emergency medical personnel met the plane at the gate and transported the most seriously injured victims to a nearby hospital. By Thursday, an “overwhelming majority” of the hospitalized passengers had been released, a Delta spokesperson told CNN.
“We are grateful for the support of all emergency responders involved,” the airline said in a statement. “Safety is our No. 1 value at Delta, and our Delta Care Team is working directly with customers to support their immediate needs.”
With News Wire Services
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