Two crew members were injured in turbulence on a flight from Corfu to London. The EasyJet pilot decided to land in Rome, where the injured were treated by medical services.
An EasyJet Airbus A320 took off from Corfu Airport on Monday and was due to land at London's Gatwick Airport. The plane encountered turbulence in Italian airspace. An EasyJet spokesman said in a statement that the turbulence caused “injuries to two cabin crew members”. It added that as a result, the captain decided to land at Rome Airport, where the crew members were treated by medical services.
An EasyJet spokesman said the plane “landed normally” in the capital. Italianand passengers were “supported in the terminal.” He also said a replacement crew and another aircraft were prepared to continue the flight to London. The passengers flew to the UK the same day, CNN reported.
The spokesman declined to say whether the injured crew members could have been flown on to London with the passengers.
He stressed in a statement that “the safety and well-being of customers and crew is easyJet's top priority and pilots are trained to cope with turbulence.”
CNN writes that the seat belt sign was supposed to be on when the plane encountered turbulence and no passengers were injured.
Italian agency launches investigation
The Italian aviation safety agency said in a statement that, given the injuries to the crew, it was opening an investigation, classifying the incident as an accident.
CNN points out that data from the flight tracking website FlightRadar shows that the plane remained at Rome's Fiumicino Airport and has not yet returned to service.
Experts warn that turbulence may increase due to climate change. According to them, the best way to avoid injury is to wear a seat belt throughout the flight.
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