Eight passengers were taken to the hospital, and six crew members were injured after a Qatar Airways flight from Doha to Dublin was rocked by severe turbulence as it overflew an area of storms in Türkiye.
Qatar Airways flight QR17, operated by a three-year-old Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, departed Doha at around 8:05 am on Sunday morning and encountered an area of turbulence around three hours into the six-hour flight.
The aircraft continued onto Dublin, where it landed safely at around 1 pm. The aircraft was met on arrival by a fleet of emergency response vehicles, including ambulances and fire engines.
In a series of statements posted to its official account on X (formerly Twitter), Dublin Airport initially reported that a total of 12 people onboard the flight had been injured – six passengers and six crew members.
The airport later said that all passengers were assessed for injuries prior to disembarking and as a result, eight passengers ended up being transported to a local hospital for further assessment.
A spokesperson for the airport was unable to divulge the extent of the injuries that passengers and crew members sustained.
In a statement, Qatar Airways said a small number of passengers and crew sustained “minor injuries” as a result of the turbulence.
“Qatar Airways can confirm that flight QR017, a Boeing B787-9 from Doha to Dublin has landed safely,” the airline said in an emailed statement.
“A small number of passengers and crew sustained minor injuries in flight and are now receiving medical attention. The matter is now subject to an internal investigation. The safety and security of our passengers and crew are our top priority.”
Qatar Airways did not respond to comment on whether the seatbelt sign was on at the time of the turbulence or what support it was currently providing passengers. The airline also declined to disclose why the pilots continued onto Dublin for another three hours of the flight.
Matt’s take
While this incident does seem relatively serious, the events on flight QR17 will no doubt gain much more media attention due to the fact that it has only been a week since a very significant turbulence event on Singapore Airlines flight SQ321 that left one passenger dead and dozens of passengers and crew seriously injured.
Since that event, Singapore Airlines has taken the decision to suspend meal services whenever the seatbelt sign is on – a practice that is relatively uncommon on a worldwide scale, although the norm at carriers including Japan Airlines and Qantas.
At present, Qatar Airways continues meal services during light turbulence but does not serve hot drinks due to the risk of scold injuries.
