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Passengers, crew hurt on HK-bound airliner

Twenty passengers and crew members on an Air Mauritius flight were injured after an Airbus 340-300 was  hit by turbulence shortly before landing  at Chek Lap Kok yesterday.

Hong Kong  aviation authorities  said they had been kept in the dark  by the captain of flight MK640,  who did not report the incident to air traffic controllers until after landing.

The Hong Kong Airport Authority  said it was  alerted about the incident by the airline's ground handling agent  about 30 minutes before the plane was scheduled to land.

The 20 injured comprised  12 men, seven women and a baby girl. Their ages ranged from several months to 60 years.

Most  suffered head injuries and cuts,  and were taken  to Princess Margaret Hospital.  One  man was  carried on a stretcher wearing a head- and neck brace after  being  thrown out of his seat.

A man, 42, and woman, 31, were still receiving treatment at the hospital last night and were in stable condition.  The other 18 were discharged after treatment.

A  passenger who escaped injury  said the aircraft 'rocked' for about two minutes. He said the turbulence happened suddenly and some passengers were caught off guard.

The captain had broadcast a warning, but the man believed some passengers had not paid attention to  the alert.

One man hit the cabin  ceiling and injured his neck, while another man  sustained head injuries, the witness said.

Some  passengers said  luggage had fallen from overhead compartments in the cabin.

The  aircraft was carrying  a total of 305 passengers and crew members. It was bound for Hong Kong from the holiday island of Mauritius, in the Indian Ocean, and was scheduled to land at Chek Lap Kok airport at 12.50pm.

The Airport Authority said it received a report at 12.23pm that the Airbus  had run into  turbulence, and that there were several  injuries.

The authority called police, and ambulances were sent to take the injured to the hospital.

The plane landed  safely at 12.47pm, the authority said.

Director-general of Civil Aviation Norman Lo Sung-man said: 'According to our colleagues, the incident happened outside the Hong Kong flight-information region.'

Mr Lo said air traffic controllers were not told of the incident until after the plane had landed. But the department was not  planning to instruct the captain  to file a report because the incident took place outside Hong Kong jurisdiction, and the plane was registered overseas.

Aircraft safety expert  Fung Kee-ying, of Hong Kong Polytechnic University's department of mechanical engineering, said:  'Air currents can change quickly, and despite radar, sometimes turbulence cannot be accurately detected.'

An  employee at the Hong Kong office of Air Mauritius would only confirm that there had been an incident and refused to give further information.



20 injured as Airbus runs into turbulence