PAL Hits Clear Turbulence Again, Injures Six

There's a reason why you should wear seat belts when seated

16 September 2016


Six people were injured after a Philippine Airlines (PAL) Boeing 777 flight from Los Angeles experienced clear air turbulence (CAT) on a severe scale Tuesday while on approach at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

CAT cannot be detected on radar, and cannot be accurately forecast. It is commonly seen in Jetstreams and Inter tropical Convergent Zones (ITCZ).

Flight PR103 radioed the Manila Control Tower, requesting medical assistance for some injured passengers. The plane landed safely at NAIA’s runway 06 at about 6:40 a.m. and was immediately attended by NAIA medical personnels.

Injured passengers were Roel Orocay, 43, and Ellis Mungin Anika Kemba, 42, who suffered physical injuries; Marc Castro, 34, sustained head trauma; Joan Ratunil, 29, spinal injury; Raquel Cruz, 25, body pain; and Katrina Angeles, 26, right hand fracture.

Four flight crew also experienced body pains when they were thrown up the ceiling. According to a website, clear air turbulence is caused when a mass of air moving at a particular speed meets another mass of air in a different speed.

A similar Philippine Airlines Airbus A340-300 aircraft, registration RP-C3438 performing flight PR-101 from Honolulu,HI (USA) to Manila (Philippines) with 132 passengers on board encountered clear air turbulence resulting in minor injuries to 15 occupants while the plane was enroute over the Pacific Ocean to Manila.

In September last year, 40 passengers of Qatar Airways Flight QR932 were injured after the plane also experienced turbulence while approaching NAIA.

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