Eight people were hospitalized Monday after a robbery JetBlue from Guayaquilin Ecuador, met “sudden and severe turbulence” shortly before arriving in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, departing from Guayaquil (Ecuador) bound for Fort LauderdaleFlorida, was en route at FL340 near the Jamaica when the plane encountered turbulence causing altitude differences of approximately – 50/+800 feet and injuring several occupants of the plane.
Airline officials have not spoken about the severity of the injuries, which affected seven passengers and one crew member. The plane landed safely at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport 55 minutes later, its intended destination, where medical personnel transported the people to the hospital.
The plane, which flew about four and a half hours from José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport, according to FlightAware data, has since been taken out of service for inspection. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are both investigating the incident, according to statements from each organization.
Previous incidents of severe turbulence this year include a flight of Delta Air Lines from Milan to Atlanta, a flight of Lufthansa connecting Frankfurt, Germany, to Austin and a flight of Condor to Mauritius.
