Investigation begins into Etihad turbulence incident

Abu Dhabi airline Etihad Airways confirmed on Thursday that an investigation has begun to determine details regarding its flight EY474 to Jakarta which was hit by severe turbulence on Wednesday.

A total of 31 passengers and crew were injured in the incident, with 22 of them released after being treated for minor injuries.

A specialist team from Etihad visited the nine passengers who were hospitalised, the airline said on Thursday. The majority will be discharged by the end of the day, it added.

The team also met with several of the families of the injured and confirmed that Etihad would cover the medical expenses.

Etihad president and chief executive officer James Hogan said: “Our pilots and cabin crew are to be commended for the calm and professional manner in which they dealt with this exceptional event, and the care they showed the passengers, despite several being injured themselves.

“It is testament to the high standard of our crew training that the effects of the turbulence were minimised. At no time was the safety of the aircraft, passengers or crew compromised.”

The Airbus A330-200 aircraft, which left Abu Dhabi at 3.20am on Wednesday morning, encountered “severe and unexpected turbulence” about 45 minutes prior to arrival at Soekarno Hatta International Airport. The flight managed to land safely.

Etihad said it is fully cooperating with the Indonesian authorities in their investigation.