Singapore Airlines emergency: Aussie Teandra Tuhkunen recalls moment she was thrown from her seat and hit the plane's roof
One passenger died and several others injured on flightAussie woman recalled being thrown into the roof READ MORE: Singapore Airlines CEO apologises for 'traumatic' flight
An Australian woman has recalled the terrifying moment she was thrown into the plane's roof while she was asleep on the Singapore Airlines flight that hit severe turbulence and resulted in the death of one passenger.
Fifty-six Aussies were on board SQ321 from London to Singapore on Tuesday afternoon when it suddenly plunged, sending passengers and crew into the ceiling.
Geoffrey Kitchen, a 73-year-old musical theatre director from Gloucestershire, UK, died of a suspected heart attack while dozens more were injured.
Eight Aussies are in hospital along with several others, while the plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Bangkok.
Teandra Tuhkunen, 30, from Melbourne, was left with one arm in a sling after she was thrown into the aircraft's roof.
'I was woken up because I was thrown to the roof and then to the floor,' she told Sky News from Bangkok's Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital.
Teandra Tuhkunen, 30, from Melbourne, was left with one arm in a sling after she was thrown into the aircraft's roof
'It was just so quick, over in a couple of seconds and then you're just shocked. Everyone's pretty freaked out.'
Ms Tuhkunen said she didn't have time to put her seatbelt on when the sign came on, and was immediately hurled upwards.
A 68-year-old grandfather from the UK, Jerry, will now have to miss his son's wedding in Australia after he, his wife and his daughter were injured in the flight.
Jerry was interviewed by the BBC with a large bandage across his forehead.
'Suddenly the plane plunged, I don't know how far but it was a long way and so sudden. There was no warning at all,' the passenger said.
'I ended up hitting my head on the ceiling (and) my wife did. Some poor people walking around ended up doing somersaults, it was absolutely terrible.
'Suddenly it stopped, and it was calm again. The staff did their best to tend to the injured people, there were a lot of them.'
A 68-year-old grandfather from the UK, Jerry, will now have to miss his son's wedding in Australia after he, his wife and his daughter were injured in the flight
He praised the staff on board, with several of them also suffering injuries.
When they landed in Bangkok, medical teams shipped the injured passengers off to hospital.
Jerry said he and his wife were initially separated but managed to reunite.
His daughter and wife remain in hospital, with the family to fly home from Bangkok and miss their son's wedding.
David, from Aberfoyle Park in Adelaide, said his sister and her husband were on board and were luckily buckled in when the turbulence hit.
'She said basically the seatbelt light came on, no chance for people to put their belts on, it (the plane) just dropped and everyone near them just flew and hit the roof,' David told FIVEaa Radio.
He said his sister called close family and friends to tell them she loved them, fearing the worst.
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It comes as former Bachelor star and pilot Jimmy Nicholson shut down news reports the plane had plunged over 6,000 feet in just five minutes.
'This is not a sudden drop due to turbulence, this is a controlled descent,' he said in a TikTok explaining the incident.
'Likely because the airplane needed to divert to Bangkok or because they were descending out of the turbulence.
'This is a very sad and very rare event but it is important to remember that these things don't happen very often.
'We do our absolute best to avoid turbulence but sometimes it happens.'
Aviation expert Geoffrey Thomas backed up Nicholson's comments, saying the plane likely plunged up to 20 metres, rather than 6,000 feet, before the pilot descended.
In pictures of the aftermath, one air stewardess was seen with blood over her face (pictured)
'The aircraft has either encountered a severe thunderstorm and flown too close to it or it's been impacted by clear air turbulence in the form of wind shear, which is a change in the wind direction,' he told Daily Mail Australia.
Mr Thomas said the type of aircraft would have had a weather radar that allows it to see up to 500,000km ahead, but areas of turbulence are not so easily detected.
He said that turbulence could be spotted from about 50km away but even then it's not always accurate.
'If it was clear air turbulence, the pilot may have had a warning from 50km out but he also could've had no warning at all,' Mr Thomas said.
The expert said the passengers on board may have suffered spinal injuries, broken arms and wrists, and cuts and lacerations to their heads.
Mr Thomas, who has been writing about aviation for 45 years, said he believes seatbelts should be mandatory for passengers whenever they're seated.
The disaster, which was caused by a pocket of unexpected turbulence 11 hours into the journey, forced the plane to make an emergency landing at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport
'When you're on the plane they say we recommend you wear your seatbelt but I think they should say you must have your seatbelt fastened,' he said.
'I think it needs to come from the captain and the safety video.'
Turbulence has also increased by 55 per cent from 1979 due to climate change, according to a study from the UK's University of Reading.
'It was a freak accident but having said that, these things are going to become more common,' Mr Thomas said.
'But it is very rare and flying is amazingly safe, if you think about it there are 110,000 flights that happen everyday.'
Of the 211 passengers and 18 crew on board the Singapore Airlines flight, Thai authorities said 71 people had been sent for treatment, six of whom were seriously injured, with many sustaining lacerations to the head as they were thrown upwards.
A relief flight with 143 of the SQ321 passengers and crew members who were able to travel arrived in Singapore early on Wednesday morning.
Singapore Airlines offered its condolences to the family of the man who died and apologised for the 'traumatic experience' passengers and crew suffered.
Almost 60 Australians were on-board flight SQ321 from London to Singapore on Tuesday when the Boeing 777-300ER aircraft suddenly plunged, hurling passengers and crew into the ceiling