Airline apologises for 'sparking panic' as plane plunged 20,000 feet

Grounded: The AirAsia plane was forced to return to Perth, Australia after depressurising mid-air
AP
Ella Wills17 October 2017

An airline has apologised after crew members apparently sparked panic on a flight that lost cabin pressure and fell rapidly for more than 20,000 feet.

The Indonesia AirAsia aircraft experienced a problem mid-flight on route to Bali, from Perth, Australia, on Sunday morning.

Oxygen masks were released and passengers said they were ordered to brace for impact.

The behaviour of staff on board the plane is said to have worsened the situation. Passengers told reporters they were screaming and tearful throughout.

The airline apologised for an "inconvenience" caused and commended the pilot for landing safely.

​Passenger Mark Bailey said the crew were “hysterical”.

He told Australia’s 7 News: “There was no real panic before that, then everyone panicked.”

Another passenger on board, Clare Askew, said: “The panic was escalated, because of the behaviour of staff, who were screaming and looking tearful.

“We look to them for reassurance and we didn’t get any.”

In a statement, the airline apologised to passengers for “any inconvenience” caused.

Ling Liong Tien, head of safety for AirAsia Group said: “We commend our pilots for landing the aircraft safely and complying with standard operating procedure. We are fully committed to the safety of our guests and crew and we will continue to ensure that we adhere to the highest safety standards.”

A passenger crying in the airport after the chaotic flight landed safely in Perth
AP

Video taken during the chaos shows oxygen masks hanging from the ceiling, and a crew member can be heard shouting, “Passengers, get down. Passengers, get down.”

Passengers were met by emergency service workers when it returned to Perth about an hour and a half after it had taken off. They were transferred to other flights.

According to the Australian Transit Safety Bureau, the plane depressurised at about 34,000 feet and conducted an emergency descent to 10,000 feet in less than 10 minutes. Passengers could breathe without the assistance of oxygen masks at 10,000 feet.

The bureau is investigating the depressurisation.

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