What We Have to Learn from Singapore Airlines Flight SQ321

Just yesterday, a Singapore Airlines flight from Singapore to London encountered severe clear air turbulence (CAT). Flight SQ321 dropped about 6,000 feet after passing through CAT, throwing passengers and crew members around the cabin, leaving one passenger dead and several passengers and crew injured. The pilots declared an emergency and diverted safely to Bangkok. The injured were immediately rushed to the hospital for treatment.

What happened to SQ321 demonstrates the forces of nature and that an aircraft is still at the mercy of mother nature. Hence, the best airlines can do is improve the safety features of the aircraft and the training of the crew. No matter how safe an aircraft or airline is, anything can still happen. Therefore, it is very important to never take safety for granted.

We can learn a lot from this incident. This is not the only one that recently happened. Many flights have flown into CAT, leaving passengers injured. In July last year, a Hawaiian Airlines Airbus A330-200 encountered CAT on its way from Honolulu to Sydney. What passengers thought would be a smooth flight turned chaotic as those who were unbuckled were thrown to the ceiling.

In May 2023, a Qatar Airways Boeing 777-300ER en route from Doha to Denpasar encountered CAT over the Bay of Bengal, resulting in some moderate and minor injuries. The flight was then diverted to Bangkok to provide first aid to all passengers and crew, and the aircraft was checked. The flight continued on to Denpasar the following day.

Lessons We Can Learn

Here are lessons we can learn from this SQ321 incident:

Always keep your seatbelt fastened. Even if the fasten seatbelt sign is switched off, please stay buckled. You can loosen it if you want to but just keep it fastened. Those passengers who usually get injured due to CAT are those with unfastened seatbelts. CAT is undetectable by the aircraft radar and this happens at cruise level, in clear skies!

Never disregard safety instructions. It is common for passengers to unfasten their seatbelts right after the plane lands, while it is still on the runway, and while taxiing to the terminal. If you think nothing can happen, you are wrong. The aircraft can still veer off the runway and come to a sudden stop. If you are unbuckled, you can get thrown off, leading to injuries.

Always listen to your cabin crew. They know the plane more than you do. They know what is safe and what is not safe. If they ask you to put your seat in an upright position, stow your tables, and open window shades for take-off, please follow because these are done for your safety.

Any routine flight can turn uneventful. On SQ321, passengers must have thought it would be a normal Singapore to London flight until the plane flew into CAT without any warning, leaving one passenger dead and several others injured. So always be vigilant and keep safety at the top of your mind. Avoid loitering around the cabin.

This is one danger cabin crew members face every day. They are usually the ones moving around the cabin to serve and attend to the needs of the passengers. In the event that the plane goes through CAT, these flight attendants can get thrown into the ceiling. Many flight attendants have been injured because of such incidents. Hence, the reason why courage and bravery are very important if you want to become a flight attendant. This is one of the dangers they face while on duty. And amidst the danger they face, these flight attendants are there, ensuring your safety on board and attending to your needs.

So please do not take safety for granted. No matter how safe an aircraft is and no matter how skilled the pilots are, they are still all subjected to the perils of flying. We can all learn from what happened to SQ321, QR960, and other similar incidents.