MORE Brits who were onboard a turbulent Singapore Airlines flight which left one grandfather dead and dozens more injured have joined forces to sue the airline.
Over 100 people were badly hurt when the Boeing 777 suddenly plummeted 178 feet in just five seconds during a flight from London to Singapore on May 20, 2024.
Passengers who endured the horrifying ordeal described the scenes as “something out of a movie” as the aircraft began to shake violently, hurling people towards the ceiling and overhead lockers.
Twenty people were hospitalised, with many requiring surgery after the traumatic flight – and Brit granddad Geoff Kitchen died of a suspected heart attack.
Now, six passengers are suing the airline through London’s High Court for personal injury compensation.
Hannah Fullerton, Andrew Dawood, Bryan Matthews, Pauline and Michael Rainey have joined forces in a legal claim against the South East Asian company.
Jack Jenkins is filing a separate case against them.
All six are demanding compensation for the harrowing experience, which saw parts of the ceiling collapse and passengers flung across the cabin as the G-force dramatically dropped over Myanmar, 11 hours into their 13 hour journey.
Eleven claims have now been filed against the company.
It comes after Linda Kitchen sued Singapore Airlines last month after her husband, Geoff Kitchen, 73, tragically died from a cardiac arrest due to the turbulence, The Sun reported.
She was also hospitalised after sustaining serious spinal injuries, only learning about her husband’s death later.
Geoff had suffered heart problems in recent years and had stents put in to widen his arteries.
The theatre director and former insurance worker was described as “a really nice bloke” by his devastated friends at the time.
He was a long-standing member of the Thornbury Musical Theatre Group and championed the wider arts scene in the town.
Three other passengers previously sued the airline.
Bradley Richards, from Benfleet, Essex, sustained six spinal injuries, which he feared would jeopardise his career.
The telecoms engineer, who was “knocked unconscious” during the turbulence, was immediately lifted into a wheelchair upon the plane’s emergency landing in Bangkok.
“I remember waking up and my head was just pouring with blood, kids were screaming, people running around everywhere, it was so frantic,” he said.
“The force of the impact on the ceiling made me feel like a rag doll,” said Benjamin Read, who along with his wife Alison also pursued compensation from Singapore Airlines.
Shocking photos of the aftermath showed food, drinks and cutlery littered across the cabin floor, with face masks hanging from the ceilings.
“I remember being pinned to the ceiling, thinking the aircraft had failed.
He described the pure terror of temporarily losing sight of his two-year-old, who was thankfully found uninjured.
“He’d been flung backwards on the aircraft.
“My wife had suffered a concussion, which resulted in a terrible seizure, and I had badly damaged my neck with the impact.
“It’s not an experience I ever want to go through again.”
Dzafran Azmir, a 28-year-old student, said: “Suddenly the aircraft started tilting up and there was shaking, so I started bracing for what was happening.
“Some people hit their heads on the baggage cabins overhead and dented it, they hit the places where lights and masks are and broke straight through it.”
An investigation attributed the incident to clear-air turbulence – invisible pockets of air that cause sudden updrafts and downdrafts.
The Boeing 777’s navigational displays reportedly showed no signs of turbulence, with visual checks showing a clear flight path ahead.
Fieldfishers, the law firm representing five of the clients currently suing, said: “The claims are progressing to procure suitable damages for passengers left with physical and consequential psychological injuries.
“We have issued proceedings in the London High Court against Singapore Airlines. These proceedings and supporting evidence will be served upon the airline’s solicitors in due course.”
Boeing said at the time: “We extend our deepest condolences to the family who lost a loved and our thoughts are with the passengers and crew.”
Singapore Airlines refused to comment on ongoing legal proceedings.
