Forty-four airline passengers and crewmembers suffered serious injuries during episodes of in-flight turbulence in 2016 — more than double the number injured the previous year, according to figures released by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in a new turbulence fact sheet on its website Wednesday.
Of the 44 people injured last year, 33 were passengers and 11 were crewmembers. In 2015, seven passengers and 14 crewmembers were injured. The worst year in the past 15 years was 2009, when 80 passengers and 26 crewmembers were injured. In 2006, only four passengers and eight crewmembers were injured.
FAA did not provide details on the injuries suffered, but the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board requires airlines to report serious injuries and fatalities. A serious injury is defined as “any injury that (1) requires the individual to be hospitalized for more than 48 hours, commencing within seven days from the date the injury was received; (2) results in a frac…
