Two people suffered broken ankles when a British Airways flight from Los Angeles to London was hit by turbulence, an investigation has found. The incident occurred on December 6, 2024, about 20 minutes after the seatbelt signs were switched on.
According to the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB), one passenger and one cabin crew member sustained serious leg injuries. The passenger, who had been asleep and was returning from the toilet, described a “sudden movement upward and sideways” that caused him to break an ankle. The crew member reported being lifted while lowering her seat to strap in, resulting in a fall that broke her ankle.
The turbulence, described by the captain as “light to moderate,” lasted 10 to 15 seconds over the Atlantic Ocean south of Greenland. The captain had activated the seatbelt signs after monitoring a weather app on his tablet, which the AAIB said prevented further injuries.
After the turbulence, another passenger fell unconscious. The captain considered diverting to Canada or Iceland but deemed them unsuitable and continued to London Heathrow, where ambulances met the Airbus A380 and took the three casualties to hospital.
A British Airways spokesperson said: “Safety is always our priority, and our highly-skilled pilots and cabin crew are trained to manage rare events such as this. The aircraft landed safely at London Heathrow, where our teams looked after both our colleague and the customer.”
